The Birmingham age-herald., 1905-02-24

l for peonage is said to be against s. D. May sheriff of Crenshaw county, who has not been seen at his home for several weeks and who has been checked up short in his accounts with the state and county When asked today lf this was SO, Assistant District Attorney Julius Stern field said he knew nothing of it, and was at a loss to know how the report became current.
 Peonage Arrests.
 Arrests on the peonage charges have been made as follows:
 John Bowdoin, Coffee county: Holding 1 Raymond Rhoda in state of peonage. 1 Both men are white. Bowdoin is under l bond.
 Justice of the Peace R. F. Parks of Coffee county: causing Robert Brooks, a negro, to be held. It is said that the negro in this case was never tried for the offense for which he was said to be held.
 John H. Giles a negro of Pike county, holding Ben Jelks, a negro. Giles has been tried by Commissioner Tutweiler of Troy and bound over.
 J. B. McElvaine, white. of Geneva l county: holding Thomas A. Berry, a 1 white man.
 George Garner, Dallas county, holding i a negro whose name was not learned.
 Oscar Hill, Pike county: holding a ne- 1 gro.
 Jeff Ham. mill owner of Coffee coun- l ty: holding negro. The evidence brought out before the commissioner at Troy shows that the negro escaped and that he was killed in the attempt to re- l turn him to work.
 Cases Reported.
 The grand jury brought in its report about 10 o'clock and after reading 1t was discharged with the thanks of the court by Judge Thomas G. Jones, presid- ing. It was reported that 223 cases had been investigated, S6 true bills found. continued and 140 no bill investigations. The time covered was year, there hay l ing been no court at the last term.
 It was found by the jury that nothing could be done with a certain lynchlng case investigated for the reason that tes- timony could not be secured The news papers had published that the Jury was looking into 1t and the witnesses had been out of reach. A witness who had turned states evidence in the state court had been sent out of the country, 1t was presumed as he could not be found It is presumed that this is the Selma lynch ing of negro some time ago in which several arrests were made and two or three white men were in jail for time Details Of Cases.
 The jury found that there had been a decrease in crime and most of the cases l considered were for minor offenses. The following are the details of the investlga- tions of the jury:
 Illicit distillng, IF; retail liquor deal- ing, 56 violating postal laws. Il; imper- sonating revenue officer, 1 resisting off, fieer, l; peonage, 16; conspiracy, 10; per jury, [; violating bankruptcy laws, ?; lar ceny of government property, 3; trespass- ing on public lands, 2; counterfeiting, 2; violating navigation laws, 2, lynching, l; violating pension laws, l.
 l Cases were Investigated by counties as follows: Randolph 25, Lee :, Chambers f. Russell 2, Tallapoosa 3. Chiffon 14 Ran l dolph 25, Lee z, Chambers 1, Russell 2. l Tallapoosa 8, Chiffon II, Autauga 3. El- more 7 Montgomery 16, Lowndes ?, Dallas g. Covington 24. Geneva 22 Houston 14. l Butler 3, Coffee 46. Dale 16 Pike IA, Cren- shaw 2, Henry 5, Barbour ?. Only four counties of the district, the middle. seem to have escaped, Macon, Perry, Coosa and Hale.
 1 Case of Sheriff May.
 The officers will begin at cnce to make arrests in the cases made, and it Is pre- stunned that several will be tried at the | 1 men indicted are prominent in ,neir sec | tions of the state In the matter of the | report concerning Sheriff May it Is re- | called that In a report made by the state examiner a few weeks ago on the books i, of MT May it was found that he had | charged for the feed of a negro whom he had been working himself, which charge was disallowed by the examiner, and it is this really. it is thought, that l made Mir May leave the state. His of flee of sheriff Is not in bad shape. and he could make good in 1t without much trouble.
 Attorney General Takes Hand.
 In the investigation of the peonage | cases for which several indictments were | returned today, the United States grand l jury was working under the direct in- 1 struction and approval of the United States Attorney General. as voiced by the I district attorney, w. s. Reese. It IS q wel-known fact that Attorney General Moody has indicated that he regards this | one of the most important criminal in- 1 vestigations. taken as whole. now pending and will watch 1t with great in- terest until a decision is reached by the Esupreme court of the United States, which | is now considering case from Florida l There is an Alabama case before the l United States circuit court of appeals, | l preme court reaches decision in the | Florida case.
 l District Attorney Reese said today that he had been very much interested in these l cases, and had endeavored to get the best of information concerning them. He believed that the indictments found were l in cases where the facts indi-ated that evidence could be secured to convict, if there was no change fin the general idea
 obstruction of the law.
 caath of Captain Screws.
 Bn death of Capt B. H. Screws ! sffc ook place today, Alabama loses
 snan who has long been identified witt
 z nn ic affairs. As soldier and states
 an has been well-known for years He was a brother of Maj. Wallace w Screws, editor of the Montgomery Ad vertser and president of the Nationa | Editorial association His son, M. H | Screws. is recording secretary to tho | Governor and well-known young law l yer The deceased was private secretar, | to Governor Patton in the days befor, reconstruction and member of the con stitutional convention. He was captain and adjutant of the Twenty-ninth infan try, c. S. A.. and was affectionatel,