The Arizona sentinel., 1895-03-23


 by the claim, payment was demanded and urged of the full amount.
 To this rate, the Attorney General demurred on the ground that it was excessive and that some of the items of expense charged in same, could not properly be included in an account for maintenance.
 For the purpose of properly pre- senting the account of the Depart ment and facilitating It's prompt con sideration, it was deemed expeGient to secure the services of Messrs. Me night & Gerry, Attorneys of Wash ington and these gentlemen were re tained for that service, their con- pensation being fixed by a contract awarding them 10 per cent of the amount secured.
 In support of the $l per diem rate, Superintendent Gates caused to be prepared, complete itemizet state ments of the quarterly expenses of the Territorial prison for the years cover ed by the claim and the averages Of prisoners confined during each quar- ter; from these it appeared that the average per capita per diem rate for maintaining Territorial prisoners was | .O275.
 Mir. Gates also secured from the Sheriff of Yavapai county an affidavit that the United States had been and was Tn fact at that time, (189D pay ing $l.50 per day for each United States prisoner confined in that county's jail From the Sheriff of Maricopa county he secured an afli- davit that the United States was then and had been for several years past, paying $l per day for each of its prisoners confined in the jail of that county and from the Clerk of the Board of Supervisors of Pima county, he secured Q similar affidavit. Copies of these documents were for wardcd by Mir. Gates to the Attorney General and to the Territory's at torneys, MessrS, Mcknight & Gerry and they furnished a most effective refutation of the claim that the rate charged was excessive.
 For complete investigation of the account, Major Leigh Chalmers of the Department of Justice visited Yuma and after thorough examination O. the records of the institution, he re- ported to the Attorney General that the account as rendered, was correct and that the @l rate was Just and moderate and recommended payment of the claim in full.
 Shortly after the rendering O this report, Mir. R. V. LaDow, also of the Department of Justice arrived Tn Yuma for the purpose of a further ex animation of the claim. He made a thorough research into all the details of the account and in lis report, he recommended the elimination of the items to which the Attorney General had taken exception and recommend ed payment to be made on a basis of 55 cents per capita per diem for each prisoner charged for.
 Mr. LaDow's recommendation was adopted and the claim allowed in the sum of $I8,763.25.
 The payment of 10 per cent of this amount to Messrs. McNight < Gerry, will reduce the net amount secured to $16,8S6.93,
 It IS almost entirely due to Super intendent Thomas Gates that the Territory Is to be benefited by the payment of this sum, as he was the first to suggest the presentation of the claim and it was also due to his un- tiung efforts in securing convincing proof in it's support, that further reduction in the per diem rate was not effected.
 The securing of tais amount, to gether with the material reduction made in the expenses of the Territorial prison during the last two years, is an eloquent tribute to the executive ability of Superintendent 1 Gates, and Governor Hughes is to be congratulated, that in honoring Mr, Gates by his appointment to the position, he has bes: subserved the in tercsts Of the taxpayers Of the Terri tory.
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