The age-herald., 1900-06-03
FINAL REPORT OF
 THE GRAND JURY One of the Strongest Ever Sub-
 mitted in This County. WORDS ARE NOT MULCHED
Calls Attention to Existing Conditions One Hundred and Ninety-eight True Bills Returned-Police
 DepartmentC Commended

organized for the spring term of the court submitted it's final report yesterday with a number of indictments, and adjourned The report is one of the strongest ever submitted by a grand jury in this county, and deals at length with conditions in this county, to which special attention is called. Social clubs come in for liberal share of attention" while gambling and other crimes are touched upon.
 The law requiring the grand jury to ex- anime the books of county officials is shown to be practically dead letter, inasmuch as it is impossible for the jury to do. the work properly.
 Chief Austin and the police department are commended for the manner in which crime is being handled, and altogether the report is an excellent one. As submitted, the report is as follows:
 The Report
 To the Hon. s. E. Greene, Judge of the Criminal Court of Jefferson County: The grand jury empaneled for the April term of the criminal court has now been in session for five weeks, three in April im- mediately after being empaneled, and two weeks during the month of May subse- quent to a vacation of three weeks.
 We have docketed about 2S0 cases, eXam-
 
 result of our labors have returned|19S true bills, many of them being cases of unusual importance-twenty-one of them murder cases. We take occasion here to say that during our entire session the utmost harmony has prevailed, and our findings in nearly every instance have been unanimously agreed upon a condition which, we think, is cause for self-congratulation. We feel that 1t is due ourselves that we hriA AfJrr. . session attention was called to numerous violations of the revenue laws In various sections of the county, especially at Ems ley, Gate City and in the vicinity of Adamsvile. Diligent inquiry soon brought the offenders to light in numbers sufficient to justify us in the feeling that our labors had not been in vain. In finding indict- ments we felt it to be our plain duty to bring in sufficient number in each indi- vidual case to punish effectively enough to be a warning to others ,and we have ac- cordingly found a bill for every offense where we felt the evidence would justify it.
 Ens1ey "SOcial Clubs' At Ensey we found open, fragrant and unblushing violation of the law on every side-the evidence before us showing about twenty-five so-called social clubs in full blast many of them making no pretense at concealment, and yet it was with the greatest difficulty that reliable evidence could be secured to justify us in finding in- dictments, witnesses before us, in many instances, betraying the densest ignorance as to the identity of the most fragrant pub lie offenders and in other instances showing most plainly to this jury that they had no regard whatever for the oath administered to them.
 At Gate City and other places the illicit traffic is hidden under the guise of hop jack" and "hop tea" which from the best information before the jury, is nothing more nor less than beer but in the absence of some definite and reliable testimony as to, what it actually is, we have thought it best not to cumber the records, or embarrass the solicitor with numerous indictments which may possibly not hold. We have therefore found only a small number of bills in these cases, enough to make test cases.
 We. recommend in this connection that the board of revenue authorize the solicitor to have this so-called 'hop jack analysed at the expense of the county, in order that 1t may be fully prepared to properly present these cases when called for trial It is certainly matter justifying serious con sideration
 Gambling
 Under this head our labors have been confined principally to investigation in the city of Birmingham, and we regret to say with very indifferent success
 As instructed by your honor, under the statue creating the inferior court the grand jury has no authority to indict in precincts 21 and 37 for the offense of gam bling alone. Abundant evidence was be- fore us to justify indictments for this of- fence, however.
 Our inquiries were directed against gam ing devices, and while these exist as was shown by the testimony of several wit nesses, still diligent questioning failed to bring to light the owners, or manipulators, who installed them, or who profit by them Like Topsy, they jest growed" and run themselves. Right here we feel that as a body we will be derelict in our duty to ourselves, to our community and to our oath as jurymen should we fail to cal special attention to one particular institu- tion in the city of Birmingham, operating under the guise of a social club This con cern in running under a legal charter but from the evidence before us the pretense of a club is used only to shield gambling of all kinds, and of the most vicious char acter. The charter of this institution should be revoked. and we call attention to 1t and recommend that steps looking to its revocation should be instituted. As to the proper course to accomplish this the jury is not advised.
 Other institutions, or clubs, We find exist where gambling is indulged in, but the case above referred to is the worst within our observation by reason of it's cloak of responsibility. All of these should have attention. and such laws should be enact ed as will prevent their existence.
 It appears to the grand jury that the law creating the inferior court for Jeffer- son county should be amended so as to re- store to this court, and its grand juries, at | least concurrent jurisdiction in gaming cases, of which it was divested by said law. We believe the ends of justice would be better met.
 The Crime of Murder
 We regret to report that murder cases consumed much of our time in investiga- tion, and as the result we have reported twenty-one bills for this cause alone
 Assaults with intent to murder come l next in turn Indeed, from the evidence | before us certain element of our popu- lation seem to consider the taking of hu- l man life matter of no consequence what ever, shooting and cutting on the slightest l preteXt. This state of affairs, we do not | hesitate to say, will continue just so long | as Jefferson county continues to be the l dumping ground for all the criminals |