The weekly intelligencer., 1898-01-15
SOMETHING WRONG.
Lafayette County Paying for Keeping
PRISONERS at the Reform School at
B0GnYiilc. Who Had Been Re
leased Months Ago.

There Is something very materially
wrong with the management Of some OF
our state institutions. Either those who
are receiving pay to attend to the busi-
ness part OF these Institutions are tco
negligent of the affairs intrusted to
them To keep posted on the time the in
mates are released from their charge, or
they are carrying on system of whole
| sale robbery, which should be stopped.
Harry Stafford was sent to the Reform
school at Boonville from this county in
1895. lie was convicted of burglary and
grand larceny, having broken into Mrs,
/ Mooreheads s millinery store. The coun-
! ty pays $40 per month for each and
every prisoner sent from here to the
Reform school. Stafford was released
| on May ], 1897, and the pay for his
| keeping should have ceased at that time.
! The. authorities at the Reform school
! have, however, continued to draw pay
| for keeping him, and have received pay
| for keeping him until February !, 1898.
or $50 more than they were entitled to.
! Robert Mitchell was sent TO the
! Reform school October, 1895, for horse
| stealing. He was released May |, 1897,
! but the managers of the institution ap-
pear to think this county should con-
tinue 10 pay them for keeping him.
| They have received pay for keeping him
| until February t@9Sq-6r for nine months
more than they were entitled to.
In these two cases The county has paid
out $50 TO the Reform school for keep
| ing prisoners who were not in the inSti-
tuition at the time, and who were
released nine months ago. The records
in the Office of the county clerk show
hi IN
show receipts signed by Nv. b. Baker,
secretary"
The last account rendered contained,
among other items, a charge of $50 for
keeping Harry Stafford from Novem-
ber, 1897, to February l, 1895; and also
the same charge for keeping Robert
Mitchell for the same length OF time.
These boys had been released from
the Reform school six months prior to
November !, 1897, and the institution
had, to that date, drawn $l20 out of the
county for keeping them when they
were not there.
The last bill, which showed the coun- |
ty indebted to the Reform school for
SEQ for keeping them until February ] |
1898, was drawn off more than six |
months after the boys had been dis
charged. The account which was rem
dered the county was made payable -
+. II. Russell, treasurer, and was drawn
OIL w W IL. DdhtI, SGCl6lhlfs SOullt1
Clerk Andrew has the receipt for the
money, which is signed by w. Il. Baker,
secretary.
That there is something wrong some
where, blind man can see. When the
of this institution continue to
draw pay for prisoners nine months
after the prisoners have been discharged
it seems TO us that 1t is about time to
call a halt in the proceedings, and to
investigate. III they are not sufficiently
Informed concerning the work for which
they receive pay, to know how many
prisoners they have under their charge,
and to know when man s time expires
and he is released, they are evidently ,
unfit for the position they hold, and
should be discharged. If they knew the
prisoners had been released from the
and yet did not notify the i
here, and have continued to
draw on the county for keeping them,
they should not only be discharged but
The county officials here ]
cannot be blamed with the matter, as it {
IS the duty of the officers of the institu-
anyone sent there from, this county is
released. In this case they had not S
lotified the officials here and have con-
inued drawing the pay for keeping them. ,
Dur county court will see that the 4.
county does not loose the money, as l
hey will deduct from the next bill
them. But while the county 4
'ouTt will recover the money and save
he taxpayers of the county the loss, it 9
loes not free the authorities of the
efOrm school of the part they have
AIKEN in the matter The matter should :
)e investigated. and that at once.