The Yellowstone journal. [volume] (Miles City, Mont.) 1893-1901, 1894-01-09

knowledge his constant, valuable aid
during all our labors in examination Of
the matters brought before US.
We tender to him and to the Sheriff
and your Honor our sincere thanks for
facilities afforded for expedIting our
business.
Dated Miles City, Mont, Jan. 6, 1894
FRED. M. KREIDLER.
Foreman.
At the conclusion Of the reading Of
foregoing report of the grand jury and
before the discharge Of its members
from further duty, they were addressed
by Judge Miiburn as follows:
Gentlemen Of the Grand jury:
Upon receiving your final report and
before discharging you for the term.
beg leave to thank you in the name OF
the respectable citizens Of this commun-
ity, especially in the name OF our res
pectable women and young girls, for
your efforts in endeavoring to discourage
the Haunting of vice under the eyes OF
refined and virtuous women and child
ren. 1t is not for me to say from the
bench In advance OF yer lets of jury
or Of pleas Of guilty whether or not the
parties by you charged are guilty or not
guilty, but | have a right to commend
you for the earnest effort you have made.
You have met opposition at the hands OF
those whose public duty it is to bring
such offenders to punishment: you have
met opposition at the hands Of those who
! hold themselves out to the community
as teachers and advocates Of virtue and
of decencv, but this should not discour-
age you.
As long as am Judge Of this district.
failing M the support Of those who
should by creed Office or profession hold
up the hands of the decent in their de
SIRE To- have decent community in
which TO 1--we. this court will be fortun-
ate il it shall have the aid Of sucn men
as ourselves in the ferretting out Of
those crimes which are noxious and
heinous II a community. because they
are So conspicuous and so damaging to
To the value Of residence property.
The Judge Of this court wishes to say
for himself and for. the County Attor-
ney. that you must feel chagrined be-
cause certain viulators oi the license
laws have been so lightly fined on plea
Of guilty. You or some Of you knew the
minimum penalty TO be $3.50 fine in GER
tain cases. wherein the court imposed
only fine of SO and costs. This Of
course was lnexplicable 20 you. You
had right to feel that your labors had
been made ridiculous. The error was
that Of the Judge and County Attorney.
and now wItn his ready consent. l say
that ! accidentally read the wrong sec
tion Of the license act. and having in
open court and az the time of sentence.
asked the County Attorney if L were
correct he fell into the same mistake as
10 the penalty. What the courts duty
in the premises now is. is not to me now
clear. as number of the parties were
doubtless led into pleading guilty by my
having So mistakenly understated the
penalty. The minimum penalty. by
practice. is almost always administered
on plea of guilty of violation of the
license laws. unless 'aggravating circum-
stances are brought to the knowledge of
| the court by the officers of the law at
I the time of sentence under plea Of
guilty. or by the evidence on a trial.
| Hence. ! administered the minimum
! penalty under the law as | mistakenly
I understood IT, and treated alike all those
pleading guilty. ! deem this explana-
| tion due to you because of my respect
for you and for your conscientious desire
to bring offenders TO adequate punish
ment.
Again thanking you for your labors
| Tor the good OF the community. IN the
face Of the opposition of those who
should be enlisted on the side Of virtue
and who should not support open and
notorious llcentiousness, j discharge you
| for the term.