The Mathews journal. (Mathews C.H. [Court House]) 1903-1937, 1912-05-23

ofSUefLUU
me commonwealth of Virginia.
at the lowest eStimate-the price
OF a handsome, weIl-e0uiDned
normal school before all the bins
paid.
Much already has been written
about the sum that will have To
be paid for the services of the
Baldwin-Felts detectives, though
no one as yet knows what the
figure will be.
w. g. Baldwin, the head of
the big concern which has pur-
sued the outlaws, declares thar
the expenses OF his men will not
be so great as Is supposed. He
says that when his bills are sent
in he will ask the Governor 10
make them public so that all may
judge for themselves whether or
not the sleuths have "gouged''
the State.
The. detectives undoubtedly
have had to spend much money
Tor incidental expenses I'm the way
OF board and lodging and for
horses and transportation.
Especially was this the case in
the days Immediately succeeding
the shooting, when the posse
numbered fifty or more.
Since then the number of man.
hunters has been much reduced.
Today there is no way of know
ing just how many detectives are
working on the case i'm one ca
pacity or another.
w. G. Baldwin keeps Quiet
about this. Possibly he is will
ing for the people of Carroll and
RISRvThnFfa H.
strength of his forces. He has at
least ten men IN WytheviIIe and
the prisoners have rarely ap-
peared I'm public without an es-
cOrt of four SleuthS. An officer
Is put I'm the ceIls-or cages
with the accused each night so
that their every movement may
be watched.
1t is altogether likely that the
cost OF the sleuths already aggre-
gates at least $25, 900, and poSsf-
bly, more. But that is only one
Item OF the expenses, though
every day increases this constabu-
larry total.
In the absence of Official Sc
cretfvencSS, one may get a better
idea as TO the cost of FLOYD Al
lens trial. That will probably
take $1,000 more out of the State
treasury.
Judge Staples gets $40 n day
for each day he sits, and he has
been on the bench since April
SOth. The twelve jurors get $3.50
day. cents mileage and board,
which. with the cost of the depu-
ties attending them, makes about
$3.50.
All of the los veniremen sum-
moned will be paid $3.50 each
and mileage up to 10 cents.
The 40 witnesses. summoned
for the most part from Carroll
county. get 81 day each and
cents mileage for an average of
fiftN-eight miles. Many have been
in Wytheville nearly two weeks.
There have also been other in
cfdcntaI expenses. though these
will hardly amount TO much. The
money growing out of them will
go chiefly to deputies and other
help.
But the end is not vet. If all
the other cases are tried-and it
is said that Claude Allen will face
jury almost as soon as Old
E1Oyd's fate is decided-the diff
ficulty in getting juries will con-
Stant1y increase, while there will
be practically the same expenses
III way vi NlNliSES~CS ulltA
guards. And so il will be until
the last act of the bloody drama
on which the curtain arose at
HillsVilIe.
In addition to the court costs,
the Commonwealth will have to
pay tho rewards Offered for the
arrest of the fugitives and pOSSi-
bly, eXtraditiOn expenses i'm the
case of Sidna Allen and Wesley
Edwards, the men still at large.
There will be little or no way
for the Commonwealth to recOup
itself. even i'm case of convictions.
unless. indeed. il follows the pre-
cedent of the MCCue case and
makes the estates of the accused
pay the costs.
Such q course might he prac-
ticable i'm the matter of Floyd Al
len and the still "uncaught"
Sidna Allen. though the other ac-
cused probably have estates that
are too small to yield over n few
hundred dollars on a forced sale.
Certain Ii is that the Allen clan
will he Wellnigh banlIruptcd ny
the shooting. The criminal pro-
ceedingS against the indicted men
will not end their discontinue.
They are also being sued for $1O.-
600 each i'm the civil courts for
the killing of those who lost their
Ifxnc m The ehnnffnoe