The age-herald., 1898-07-13
E CLERK BURGIN'S
 BOOKS EXAMINED Examiner PurifOy Compliments Their
 System and NeatleSS. SOME SLIGHT SHORTAGES On Errors Are Reported, Which Are Made
 Good by the Clerk. JUDGE GREENE IS CRITICISED For Remittng Amounts Whereby the Fine and Forfeiture Fund Loses $6,720.45-
 Judge Greene Claims Rightto
 Make Such Remittances.
JUDGE GREENE IS CRITICISED
Special Dispatch to The Age-Herald.

special Dispatch to The Age-Herald.
 Montgomery, July Estate Examiner of Public Accounts Purifoy has examined the books and accounts of w. M. Burgin, clerk of the criminal court of Jefferson county, beginning with the September term 1897, of said court and covering the period to which his records would permit, say to, and in- cluding the September term. He says: q note that he has not taxed up and collected fees for feeding prisoners while in jail, where such prisoners were convicted and judgment confessd, or fine and costs wele paid by such prisoner, in cases aggregating S14l.2o He states that the items composing this exhibit were not taxed and collected, because it is held by Judge Samuel E. Greene, judge presiding over the criminal court, that defendants cannot be taxed wi. h the fee for feeding them while in jail, if ob- jeetion is made by such defendant, and Judge Greene requested me to state in my report that this statement is true and that he is responsible for the failure of Clerk Burgin to discharge this duty in the cases named. This rule, however, prevails only where the defendant objects.
 Slight Errors Explained
 ''The additional sum of $93.6O collected for Jail board was remitted to the state treas- urer on the 16th of June last, the items of the greater part of which sum were checked off my memorandum after such remittance was made, and the treasurer's receipt for the same was presented by Clerk Burgn. Of this sum $16.50 accrued from convictions had at the January term 1895, of the crim- inal court. The clerk states that the item composing this sum were inadvertently held by ex-Sherif Morrow since their collection. Ex-Sheriff Morrows attention being called n 10 ignorant of the fact that this sum was in his possession, under such circumstances.
 '.The clerk also remtted the sum of $10 B for jail board, collected from convicted de- fendants on the 26th of March last, after I began my examination in Jefferson county. Of this sum $1S.20 was in the form of a duplicate check on the National bank, of New York, the original of which was drawn by the Alabama National bank, May 27, 1S97 ten months prior to the date the duplicate reached the treasury. Mr. Burgin says the original was promptly mailed to the treasurer, and that he had but recently discovered that 1t had not been cashed.
 Did Not Comply With Law
 ''Clerk Burgin has not complied with the law requiring him to remit these to the state treasurer within ten days after col- lection. This he acknowledged, but ex- plained that with the volume of business passing through his office he finds it im- practicable to comply promptly
 He has not heretofore complied with the law requiring him to issue execution for costs against convicted persons sentenced to hard labor and to the penitentiary Re- gently hundreds of executions were issued against such persons, running back for W eral years, and placed in the hands of the sheriff That the mass of such persons are insolvent will not be questioned but section 4559 of the code (4S93) requires that execution be issued and no property shown by such execution before such insolvency is legally proven.
 Cost Bill Overcharges
 "I checked up the cost bills in peniten- tiary cases, collected by Clerk Burgin out of the state treasury Tn the performance of this duty I was necessarily confined to the clerks records, since it is impracticable to hunt up the witnesses who are shown to have been summoned, to prove the per diem and mileage collected on their ac- count as well sheriff's and clerks fees accruing on account of executing and issu- ing subpoenas. In verifying the items col lected for making final report, for which he is legally entitled to 15 cents per hun dred words, I note by actual count, that he has collected in the 249 bills, collected during the period examined the sum of S1S7.95 more than he is legally entitled to, on which sum there is accrued interest amounting to s62S4 an average over charge, not including interst, of 75 cents for each final record. The items of which this sum is made up, with the several items of accrued interest are set forth in eX- hbit hereto attached.
 'Mr. Burgin says that in making this charge it was usually done on an estimate and not on an actual count, the others all fall below. The 2S2 cost bills collected by MT. Burgin for years previous to the ex- animation were not included in this exami- nation.