The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1901-02-15
CIVIL BRlNGH \ luxury
MUNICIPAL COURT CLERK CONR0Y,s
REPORT CONTAINS INTER-
ESTING FIGURES
HEAVY DEFICIT IS SHOWN
In the Civil Court Salaries Alone
Amount to Eight Times Total
decentralization Is
Talked OF.

The annual report of the municipal
court for 1900, being prepared by Clerk
Conroy, shows the civil branch of the
court to be a heavy expense although
it furnishes several snug political berths
The total receipts from this branch of
the court for the year amount to but 1916
while the cost of maintenance for sal
aries alone has amounted to s., 240. Of
this amount a judge draws a salary Of
$4,000, deputy clerk 81, 200 a stenographer
$1,000, and a bailin $40, though this last
item of salary does not come out of the
municipal court fund
Notwithstanding this condition of af-
fairs an additional appropriation of 81, 125
has been made for municipal court ex-
penses for the coming year. and a bill
giving the clerk, with the approval of the
judge, the right to appoint three addt-
tional deputies entailing a further ex-
pense Of several thousand dollars an
nually for this branch of the city gov
eminent, has been prepared to be pre-
scented to the legislature, and both judges
are said to be vigorously pushing the
measure calculated to give them this adj
ditional political patronage at the eX-
pense of the taxpayers.
These conditions have already revived
the movement for the abolition of the
civil branch of the court, as a time saw
ing and a bill to do away with this lux
Try is being formulated to be presented
to the legislature with that end in view.
The bill will provide for making the
criminal branch of the court a regular
police court such as all large cities now
have, and will take the civil cases now
tried by the municipal court to justice
courts, with provision for trying cases
beyond the jurisdiction Of justice courts
before the district court. Many lawyers
have endorsed this plan, and it is SAID
the attention of local commercial bodies
will be called to the situation.
Receipts from the criminal branch of
the court for the year amount to S22 OS6.
Of this sum $11,4o0 was received as fines
from keepers of disorderly houses. De-
Quoting this amount from the total re-
ceipts leaves but $40 $50 accruing from the
criminal branch of the court, where the
actual expenditures for salaries alone
were s14.5S0, including $1,6S0 salaries for
two bailiffs, which, however, does not
come out of the court fund.
The number of criminal cases for the
wear was 5,221 There were 1,15S con-
victions. 1851 commitments to the work
house, 2.391 cases dismissed, and 4,lS9
cases continued Fines were imposed IN
LIP cases, So prisoners were held TO the
grand Jury and 40 persons accused OIL
state offenses waived examination.
In view of the showing of the court,
according to the figures OF Clerk Con
roys report, it is argued that the effort
to increase the expenses OF TINS depart
ment of the city government may orlne
down the storm of retrenchment ttat
hovered so menacing1y over the court
during the session of the last legislature
and which again darkened its horizon al
most as soon as the present legislature
convened