The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1907-01-17

NON-ENFORCfmENT.
A Return to the "Bangor Plan" at the jan
uary Term Of Court.
To THE EDITOR OF THE JOURNAL: Since
the election last September of the Hon.
VIM. P. Thompson, Democratic candidate
for county attorney, by majority of PAT
over the Republican candidate, Mr.. H. C.
Buzzell, the plain people have waited with
much interest for the results of the Janu-
ary term of court at which this new official
of recognized ability and much promise
should be clothed with the authority of the
State of Maine to prosecute the criminals of
Waldo County for the protection of society.
Officers are answerable to the people
whose hired men they are and the people
have right to know what they do and how
they do it,
There were GA cases to be disposed of at
the January term of supreme judicial court
just past, as follows:
Left over from September term. ..........5 .56
Appealed from police court since Septem-
DeT..... .............. Z
Indictment by grand jury, January term,
1871. ...................-- l
Total l..................... "a
They were disposed of as follows:
Nothing DONE. Observation-Disclosures. At
Personal recOgnlZance ordered. d............ 2
Continued. ......................
~ u .
Settled by fines. ....................... 4
Leaving on the docket now............. 80
Two of Edward Hanson's cases, one a
search and seizure and one common nuis
ance, were settled for $11O each.
Walter Dalton in one of his cases paid
$110
Robert Logan in one of his cases paid
$210, making $40 from the four cases, when
the full penalties would have aggregated
$4,000 and two years and four months in
Jail. Only two of the eight cases mol pross-
ed were weak in point of evidence.
The Robert Logan case, above referred to,
was common nu sance case, tried last Sep
tember before Justice Spear, with a verdict
of guilty, and sentence to pay fine of $3.50
and costs and four months in Jail, and in
default of payment of fine and cost, four
months additional. Exceptions were filed
and the case carried to the law court (for
delay of course). 1t is claimed that Logan's
attorney, Hon. Arthur Ritchie, by some
misunderstanding gained County Attorney
Fosters consent to continuance of this
case at the December law court, with the
result (not prearranged, of course), that
when court rises we find that the records
show in this case the exceptions and mo-
tom had been withdrawn and the case mol
pressed on payment OF 5000 and costs, taxed
at SO. Fine and costs paid.
Thus the work of one judge is undone by
his successor, for this could not have been
done without the cooperation of County
Attorney Thompson and the consent of
Judge Whitehouse. Judge Spear imposed
sentence of $3.50 and four months in Jail,
which surely was not extreme in view of
the fact that he might have imposed a fine
of $1,000 and one year in Jail. At the time
of the trial Of this case last September Mr..
Thompson said of it, "It was the strongest
evidence l ever heard at the trial of a
llQuOt case. ANY Sdu6 HAL Cdu Sco budt IL
was worth something to Mr.. Logan to have
$50 taken from his fine and to have four
months Jail sentence mol pressed Logan
has run the Ph(enix House about two years
and now has nine cases on the docket. He
has never before paid a fine during this
time. He has succeeded in getting off, by one
means and another; running away from
court as a last resort.
Any reflection by me on the good inten-
tions and righteous purposes of the court
would expose me to the peril of being fined
or imprisoned for contempt of court"
therefore shall make none. | read story
the other day of good Quaker who arrived
at the station just in time to see his train
departing He felt much annoyed, but
being a good Quaker said nothing. Pres
emily another man came putting up to the
station, who, when he saw he was left,
swore most vigorously, whereupon the
good Quaker said "Thank thee friend,
thank thee, thee hast said what felt.''
Walter Dalton has run the Hillside House
at Frankfort, under lease from W. S. Ed
minister for about three months. Report
states that he has put out a good deal of
liquor. The officers raided him twice, the
last time finding his ''hide'' and getting
large quantity. Following the search and
seizure he was tried in the police court on
charge of keeping common nuisance and
bound over to the grand jury, and this was
the only Indictment for rum selling brought
at this January term. Dalton's attor-
ney, the Hon. Ellery Bowden, succeeded in
getting the search and seizure case dispos-
ed of on payment of $40, while the more
important common nuisance case was con-
tinued without bail. Dalton is back at the
Hillside House.
Hanson has run the Frankfort House,
formerly the Manor House, for about two
years and this was the first time the
officers have succeeded in getting him be-
fore the Court, as he has repeatedly run
away.
Against him there was total of cases,
and two of those were settled for $11O each,
when the full penalty would have been
$1,1OO and costs and one year and so days
in Jail. The other FIVE cases are either con-
tinued or nothing was done with them, al
lOwipu th;S man who has RIM aua, ro