Perth Amboy evening news., 1906-01-17
WHAT IT COSTS FOR
COUNTY JAIL YEARLY
Continued from Page ~

house. The bills for the gas and
electric light for the year foot up ST.
042.93, Or an average cost of over
$50 a month. Then the telephone in
the sheriff'S Office costs the county
Sc every month and to keep the jail
and sheriff's Office and house warm
last year cost $576.36. this being
the amount paid for coal and wood.
Clothing and shoes are often furn-
ished prisoners who are found by the
freeholders to be in great need there
of. Bills for clothing and merchan-
disc for the Jail amounted to $709,-
u. There were 101 pairs of shoes
furnished and for these the county
paid $157.
Medicines were in great demand
according to the amount of the bills
for prescriptions, etc, filled during
the year. Some of the prisoners Of
ten arrive at the Jail in such a condi-
lion that they need a tonic to take
the brown taste out of their mouth
and salt them up a little. Their
ClOLllIlS 10 DOiltu uOMH ~ III JtHi
washman and Il dose given to sober
them up while the clothes are drying
out on the jail radiators. These pre-
scription doses cost the county last
year @$457.S1.
During last year there was one of
the periodical Jail breakings when
one or more of the prisoners took
French leave through a hole in the
roof. There is a gentle reminder of
this in the report of the county col
lector for last September when a bill
of $1.00 was paid for repairing the
Jail roof. In this same month an
ether bill of $685. was paid for
BLACKSMITH work done for the JAIL
so the report reads. The county does
not have any horses to be shod so
that it is believed the bill was for re-
pairs to the irOnWork in II of the
grated cell doors or windows where
the fugitiveS sawed their way Il
Special officers watched the Jail three
or fonr nights after escapes or at
tempted escapes and for this service
the county paid $32.
The sheriff, it has always been
thought, had to meet the expenses of
e~ndeavoring to catch prisoners when
they made their escape from Jail.
Last June Former Sheriff Carman
was paid $50 for expenses captur-
ing escaped prisoners and this item
is added in with the general Jail *
penses against the county.
a Waterman was also employed TO
guard the jail at night during the
past ear and such an official still
does such duty at the Jail. He acts
as warden during the night and let's
in all prisoners brought by officers
who have been arrested during the
night time. He draws $50 a month
for his services.
There We're a lot of odds and ends
discovered in the accounts charged
against the county Jail expenses. For
instance, Il charge was 81 for Il
pair of handouts Of the Mattby make.
Then there was a charge of $3.50 for
the use of the ambulance in Il Jail
case. The Jail had to be insured not
against the escape of any of the in
mates, as no company would be will
ing to take such a risk except at a
high premium. but against fire.
Then the bedticks had to be re-
filled when they became too lively,
and for straw for bedding the cost
during the year was $40.25. And the
jail had to be disinfected now and
then as all classes and breeds arrive
there during a year md the place has
to be kept in a sanitary condition as
much as possible. The cost for dis
infectants last ear a $222.25.
The city had to be paid for water,
The cost being about $140, and there
was some painting done about the
sueritf's office and house, some wall
paper hung, for which the county was
taxed $50.
a glimpse of the new Jail is also
given in the reports, there being two
payments for a new Jail which has
not yet materialized. One bill was
for $3.50 for the plans drawn by the
Van Doren Iron Works, which were
considered by the Board of Free
holders, but the cost thought to be
too high. The other bill is for $500
for an architect in connection with
these plans.
That a better idea may be gained
as to how the jail expenses run up
each month, the following table for
the several months is given, the five
months whore the amount is over a
thousand dollars being the months
when the sheriff was paid for board:
January, ...............S 1875
February, 41.23
March, 2,O3O.49
April, 97.35
May, 2,962.35
June, 1884