The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1907-02-22
REPORT OF GRAND JURY.

AlRCGII NOlkI FOX IlAkfOkD AOpNlA.
The grand jary for the February term,
1907, Of the Circuit Court for Hartford
county, respectfully reports:
That it has been in session seven days.
Ii has examined rs witnesses. 1t has
found % prcsentments and the same
number OF tue bills OF indictment. 1t
has visited tie county jail and found
confined therein eight persons, all col
o1ld, three o! whom are confined for lar
ceny, ore for bastardy, one for assault
and robbery, two for the action of the
grand Jury and one for carrying con
ccaled weapons. 1t found the Jail as
clean aud comfortable as is possible. con-
siderjng It's autiquated and dilapidated
condition The grand j1ry thinks, as has
often been reported heretofore, that the
Jail and the sheritf's residence are wholly
unfit for their present requirements.
The grand jury also reports that the
books belonging to the office of the treas
urer of the county, which were missing.
have been returned, and it believes that
the records of that Office are now COM
p!ctc That the books in question were
not carried from that office by Mr.. E. M.
Alien, as suggested by the committee
who investigated the affairs of the coun-
ty, but by Mr.. Charles F. Harry. who
returned them in obedience to a writ
issCed by the court for that purpose.
Following the instructions of the court
as well as it could without unwarranted
consumption of time, it has examined
somewhat into the condition of the office
of the County Commissioners and found
that their business methods have been
wholly unsatisfactory. The books and
accounts therein have been so IRREGULAR,
kept as to make it utterly impossible to
examine into the IF airs of that office
with any hope of ascertaining anything
like a satisfactory conclusion. 1t is,
however, now understood that the mat
ter of unsatisfactory bookkeeping has
been remedied. The County Commission
CrS appear to have employed an ovet seer
Of the a!mShCu9e. and to have made him
q general agent over everything apper-
tanning to the property, and the persons
cOItGed therein; and that without any
check over his administration OF that OF
fec worthy of that name, he was permit
ted to purchase supplies almost without
limit and the COmmi; sioners were not
made aware of any extratagance until it
was too late to apply the remedy. The
grand jury thinks, and would suggest,
that no purchase of supplies for the aims
house or for any other public purpose
should BE- made by the oyerseer, or by
any oficerol becouuty, without first ap
plying for ard obtaining requisite n for
the same to the Board OF County Com.
e. IilissiOners
he same methods, without adequate
check, have obtained in the dealings be-
tween the County Commissioners and
the sheriff's office The sheriff seems to
have been permitted in the main, to pur-
chase his own supplies without that init
mate knowledge Of the County Commits
s:Oners, SO necessary for the prevention
Of waste, which has at times resulted in
the most ridiculous extravaganza for
instance, i'll the year 1901, $l74 81 was
Expended for disiniectants, and in the
year 1905, S2lG 60 was expended for the
same purpose. The grand jury has in
formation that 500 per annum would
be 4 large allowance for disinfectants,
and one ex-sheriff testified that during
his incumbency he had expended less than
81 annually Tor that purpose, and it is
we'll known that the condition of the
jail was satisfactory during his term of
Office.
This same want of proper checks has
resulted disastrOusly for the county in
the matter Of settling with former sher-
III for the fees supposed to belong to his
Office. 1t is believed by the grand jury
that fees have been paid to this former
sheriff when no services have been per
termed. That fees have been paid by the
County Commissioners for conveying
prisoners to institutions when no prison.
ers have been delivered. That fees have
been paid for the arrest and transpurta-
ton of prisoners when no arrests have
been made and no prisoners transported
Il is only just, however, to say that
there are great difficulties in the way of
following up, with anything like exact
ness, these transactions, but the grand
jury would suggest frequent settlements
whilst the transactions are still fresh to
the minds of the officers of the county,
and that when all such accounts are pre-
serted for payment, the County Commits
sioners shall require the production of
copy of the docket entries of the court or
magistrate, and a receipt from the super
lntendent of the institution to which the
party was committed before such &C.
counts are paid.
1t has come to the knowledge of the
grand jury that whilst the law makes it
the duty Of the treasurer of Hartford
county to assess such property in Har
ford county as does notappear upon the
last regular assessment, that he does not
perform that duty, but instead Mr.. Will
liam +. Hays is employed by the County
Commissioners to perform that duty at
rates much in excess of what the law al
lows to the treasurer, though the treas
urer IS reported to have received part
of the pay. 1t is claimed, however, that
by so doing a much larger revenue is Sc
cured for the county.
Neglect or Indifference on the part of
the officers of the county in one depart
ment as touching a full observance of the
law tends to produce like disregard of
law in other departments, and so it hap
pens that custom has grown up of feed
ing tramps at the county Jail at the rate
of forty cents day without any war
rant Of law whatsoever. 1t is most re-
spectlully submitted that the almshouse
IS the proper place provided by law for
this charity, and place where this work
may be done more effectively and with
lsss expense to the county. 1t appears
by the account of one of he ex-sheriffs of
Hartford county that as many as AZ
tramps have been fed in a single day and
the account for the same paid by the
County Commissioners
In view of what has been said in this
L
the court, it may be pertinently asked,
How does it happen that violations of
the law are here enumerated and that in
some OF these cases no presentmentS.or
indictments have been found ~ In an
swer, the grand jury can only say that
matters which appear irregular and
Thich might have rendered some OF the
officials liable TO preEentments are at this
time barred by statutes of limitation,
and there are many others which from
lapse OF time and other causes make it
very difficult, if not impossible to estab- |
lish by proof 1t knows too we'll that
such pretended detenses as custom, pre-
sCript1ve rights, ignorance of the law |
etc, weigh too much with the ordinary
jury, and beside all this they know that |
another grand jury will soon follow this |
one, whose duty to investigate the affairs |
of the comfy will be just as binding upon |
1t as upon this grand jury, and it trusts |
that future grand juries will have oppor- !
tunitiCs to investigate and to enforce the |
law very much improved by the work of |
this grand jury, and therefore this grand |
jury has concluded that the interest of |
the county for the present will be better |
served if instead of bringing indictments |
for some of the above enumerated Of |
fences. where it is deemed the evidence is |
not fully sufficient, it serves notice upon |
all Offenders the manner in which the |
laws have been commonly violated here |
totoTe and that any excuse not allowed |
10y law will not hereafter be sufft red to |
intervene to prevent presertmeats or in
'dictments or TO be set up i'll extenuation
or paiiiation of their offences.
Z he grand jury thanks the court and |