The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-04-21


lnally provision requiring bond pay
able to the state on the part of the
president of the board of convict inspec-
tors and that this provision of the bill
WAS amended out of il and the special
bill for that purpose died on the cal
endar. Under the law the convict de-
lpartment had no authority to pay any
bills accrung against it. Its whole
dealings with reference TO the payment
of sums received by it laid in its duty
to turn those funds over to the state
| treasurer. There was no reason why
those funds should have been retained
| In the convict bureau for one day or
one month or three months.
| AS soon as they were received, being
| the property of the state of Alabama,
their proper destination was the treas
Jury of the state of Alabama. The
statute permitting them to be retained,
fixing the convict department as a way
station for their detention, seems to
find no justifiable basis in business deal
| ings. This statute was in effect when
my administration begun and is still
in effect today. Since my administration
began its effect has been largely abro-
gated because ] have required the con-
| vict department to pay into the state
Treasury the funds belonging to tho
state in it's hands at much more fire.
quent intervals. The books of the au-
ditor and treasurer show in detail that
since the beginning of my admnistra-
ltion the receipts of the convict depart
ment were turned into the treasury al
most as soon as received. To repeat, un-
der the law as it existed when / as
sumed office the convict department
was permitted to retain the revenues
required to be paid 1t each month
until the beginning of each quarter Of
the year
AS Rapidly as Collected
Since my administration began, al
though the same law was in effect, tho
convict department has been required
to pay and has paid into the treasury
its receipts practically as rapidly as
collected. In many instances there have
been as many as three or four pay
ments per month and in no instance has
the convict department at the end OF
any month, so far as my orders were
concerned or so far as my knowledge
was concerned, retained any consider
able sum- In other words, notwith-
lstanding the law, l have required the
lconvict board to transmit the runds
which it received to their proper desti-
nation without reference to the fact
that 1t was entitled to retain them for
quarterly settlements
Whatever the effect of this change in
the law may have been regarding set
Elements by the convict board with the
treasurer during the period that elapsed
between its passage and the commence
ment of my administration ii was prac-
tically abrogated from the beginning
| of my administration by the fact that
| / required the convict bureau to turn
into the state treasury as rapidly as
received the proceeds of convict labor
and all other sums belonging to the
state coming into the possession of this
department. | append for general in
formation partial statement of the
iates on which the convict department,
turned into the treasury and the
amounts turned in 1t would con-
sumo altogethei%too much space to give
levery item in detail. but that given is
typical of the general trend of the
transactions. The defalcation which has
recently occurred in the convict de-
partment has been gladly seized upon
by the chronic enemies Of my admin
istration as a basis for unjust criti-
cismSof the entire management of that
department. | meet this challenge
gladly with the figures of the depart
ment However unfounded and poor my
judgment may have been is selecting
officers of that department 1t remains
"a mathematical fact that the returns
from the department during my adj
ministration have been greatly in ex-
cess of the returns during any previoAs
administration in the history OF the
state. 1 have selected the period, elaps-
ing from 1907 to the end OF the fiscal
year of 1912 as the basis of comparison
as that was the date at which the
change in the law was made and as
the period elapsing between 1907 and
the beginning OF my administration is
that in which the popular judgment
assumes the department to have been
conducted on the soundest basis of busi-
ness efficiency. The receipts and dis
bursements and net revenues of the con-
vict department for each of the fiscal
years commencing October 1, 1906. and
ending September 80, 1912. is as fol-
lows:
For the fiscal year ending septem-
ber 80, 1907:
Receipts $646.345.05
....-...s ~. 457,507.o9
Net revenue ............. .$1Ss,S37.96
For the fiscal year ending septem-
ber 80. 1908:
Disbursements .............. 432,659.96
Net revenue .............. .s45s,S12.91
For the fiscal year ending Septem-
ber 80. 1909:
Receipts SS24,145.2S
Disbursements ..-........... 4s2.207.59
Net revenue ....-........... s3fl l,sS7-S9
For the fiscal year ending Septenl-
Der 80. 1910:
Receipts ................. 81, ,OS5,016.o5
Disbursements ............ 7oo.345.34
Net revenue .............s 3S4,670.f1
For the fiscal year ending septem-
Der so, 1911: