The Lake Charles echo., 1893-09-08
Judge FOurneI's Charge TO the
Grand Jury

Grand Jury.
GpNT1rwrr on TIM GRAND JuRY.--The law
makes It Incumbent on me to instruct you % TO
your general powers and duties, and 70 charge
you concerning any other matter OF public inter-
est, which may come within your ooseEs5h.,g9n 5ag
whenever 1T may happen that your action relative
to such matter may prove beneficial to the gem
eral interests of the public, which you may ad-
vance, eitherby suggesting advantageous changes
or Teproving wrongs and abuses If any exist.
Your powers TO Investigate all violations OF law
are broad and amply sufficient to enable Won 70
assist materially In the repression Of crime, Il you
viii diligently and cOnscientiOusly exercise them
But, while your powers are paramount m TINS re-
speob and this court Is mainly dependent upon
you to bring offenders before the bar Of public
Justice 1t is also true that unaded by those whose
duty it IA 70 see that the law Il faithfully executed
you cannot, Of yourselves, achieve much that will
be Immediately conducive to the public good or 70
the furtheranGe Of the ends Of justice. For, I'M
less you are ably and honestly seconded by the
officers OF the law, whether state par0ehihl or
whose functions are to execute the
law and vindCate you in your findings, your Ia
bOFs will prove deficient in abiding results for the
public good. SO YOU will readily perceive that
your dIty lies not only in examining into the ac-
tuai commission Of Offenses against the law, in
order % attach @ adequate penalty on On we Pefpe' pc
anime into the condnet Of all officers charged
with the execution Of the law and the prevention
of its violation to ascertain and report how far
they have been Temiss or negligent In tho per-
f0rmhnee Of their duties, 1t Is nothing but to
eOuntenanee and encourage the commission Of
crime for officers to fail in making arrests or pre-.
ferFing charges in cases coming within their
knowledge and where the law is openly and def.
The law makes it my duty to charge you par.
tculaTly TO inquire into any willful obstruction
To the nayigable Btreams and lakes In the parish,
by which their navigation may be impeded or
rendered more difficult or dangerous into tres.
passes upon public lands belonging to the state,
and into the brutal habit Of carrying concealed
weapons, .N
I think it will not be amiss If I also charge you
here, specially TO enquire into any violation Of
the law providing penalties for selling intOXiCat-
ing Iiqu0Hs to minors, and to the law providing
against enticing females under sixteen years OF
age into houses of ill-fams. Common deeenoy and
morality demand that neither Of these Offsnses
shOuId 20 unpublished. A more thorough enforce.
ment of the sunday law, VIII Gh is here observed
by all our trgdGTs and business men, while the
saloonS alone appear % be exempt from lts appil'
l4ful consideration. The number of these estRb.
lishments is sufficiently large to excite our appFe.
tensions to their evil effects upon the people Of
this city Their closure for twenty -four hours Ia
| week would TO that extent at least reduce the
opportunities and the time devoted TO the salts
/ faction of those possessed Of the uncomfortable
passion for strong drink. This is q matter which,
| If properly attended to by the town authorities
| could be easily Temedied, and hope that, even
| II you should not have occasion to find any true
bill on this score, your condemnation of the pFaG
tiCe will be sufficient to awake the town authOTI
| ties to the necessity Of enforcing the law,
Your special attention ought also to be directed
TO the public roads and bridges Of the parish Tht
work on these roads is now mostly let out by con
| tract. This fact does not dispense yOn from the
duty of seeing that they constructed according
to the specifications Of the GODtFaGt and, becaust
the police jury under the law has full control OVel
| them your power and duty TO examine into all
matters relative to the general welfare of the par
| ish renders it incumbent upon you to examine
into and report any case or instance where the re
! quirements Of the law or the conditions Of the
! contracts for the public roads and bridges have
not been complied with as well as any case wb0TI
the contract Itself is defective and injurious to the
With the threat impending of an epidemic dis
ease which hDds its "aliment" and prOpagatei
itself in the impurities Of deGOmpOsed matter ant
staEnant water and as a matter Of interest to thi
| whole parish the sanitary condition of the city o
| Lake Charles, the parish seat where people iron
all DRrts of the parish COnRTRgate for recreation
| and business, and where yOur public affairs RTt
conducted, should engage your speciAl solicitude
/ Although provided with special charter, havinl
| q municipal body corporate independent of thI
parish authorities, the welfare and sanitary con
ditiOn of this city are matters which concern yOI
directly. NuisanCes are public Oiienses, and yOI
have the power and it is yOnF duty to abate them
| whether they OCcur within the limits Of mHntCi
pal corporation or anywhere else in the parish,
| / have been requested by several of our citizen
| to call yOnF attention to the manner in WhiCl
some of the streets of this city are being used, o
rather ''misqsedt by the railroads and stree
railways under color Of franchises and privilege
| granted to that effect by the town authorities
The town authorities Themselves much less rail
road corporations, have no power to divert IN
use of the streets from their original purpose
The grant of right to use the streets Of city 3
a railway company is always subordinate to tn
right Of the people at large to ride or drive aiOD
| the streets without unnecessary difficulty, 4
street railway should be so constructed and mRiI
tanned as not to materially impair the rghts Q
the public to travel in the ordinary way along III
streets, and not to Obstruct the easy access whic
the residents on the street should at all time
have to their property. In constructing thel
roads railway companies should not be permitte
to make excavations on adjoining property, no
even on their own right Of way, when these eXef
| vatiOns have the effect of ObstruCtiDg drainag
| aud creating ponds Of stagnant water, hkewts
deleteFious to health and the convenient use Of t
| adjoining property. These conditions are man
fest almost all along the eastern portion Of I'll
town where both the Southern Pacific and I'll
| Watkins railroads have constructed their Toal
beds without regard to the proper drainage Of d
surrounding lands. In this connection, 1t 10 ala
| proper to call your attention to another nuisance
which is the obstruction placed along the lAl
front, where the street lGs been taken possessiq
Of and cross ties and rails laid over it, for sever
months, without any apparent intention Of Ope
ating in good faith railway for the acCOmmOd
ton Of the public. Admitting that gener
license has been granted to 0 street railway TO Ill
I the streets for that purpose, nevertheless sue
, company cannot be permitted to take only &C
Orabe possession solely for the purpose Of keepiE
| out other companies. go
Your oath makes it obligatory upon you d
gently to inquire and true pl eseDtmeDt make
| only Of such matters and things as are given "
IN charge by the court and submitted 10 your co
sderati0D by the prosecuting officer and 9th
persOns but also Of all matters OF which you mi
| have knowledge from whatever source the info
| nation may have been deFived-whetbeF fro
D | credible evidence adduCed before you or fro
| your own personal knowledge.
| You must most particularly gu0Fd y0uTseiV
j against accusations actuated by every priva
A enmity and malice, and you must never let yo
DRrtiality or favor dictate the conclusion You mi
| arrive at in any case. AS all men are equal
N | fore the law none should be exempt Of the Law
: bebssts on account Of wealth or station; and no
should remain unprotected in their rights 81
n | privileges because they are too humble or
!, poor, ,,, .
u Your deliberations must bo protected with b
/ mantle of secTecy, which the Law places over yG
not to shield you from any responsibility b0t
y order to procure the timely arrest Of persons
g eused Of crime and more especially to insure
ftse unbiased aud untTammeled expression Of
Individual Judgment Of each member Of Your bsd
L The preservation of secrecy Of what occurs wa
In your room, viii also be guarantee Of the me
y | perfsot freedom and assurance Of the witness
q before YOU In diVulging what they know.
Although the investigation which you ~
. 1 make Of a case is within closed doors, out
s | the presence Of the accused, and generally
| stri6ted TO the examination Of evidence tor !
2 prosecution, and although yOnr functions
d merely to accuse-nOt TO pronounce upon the gu
! or Innocence Of the accused-yet. your conclasif
must repose upon strong legal evidence p2t V
ali v statements or suspicious In word, the 2
> denee before you to j1stify you In bringing y
true bill against any accused person, must
It such as, IL loft unexplained or uneontradlcU
\ would be sufficient to convict.
1