The Grenada sentinel. [volume] (Grenada, Miss.) 1868-1955, 1913-06-27
THE PEMTENTlARY
INVESTIGATION.
n An Editorial Comment the Jackson
Daily News Says The Trustees
Should be Indicted.

1N*
day contained the following editoris
utterance regarding the %penitentiar
investigation. under the caption. 9Th
Trustees Should be Indicted" TIL
reader will understand that the circui
court is in session at Jackson, an
when the editorial appeared there ha
already been several persons indicte,
on the charge of alleged grating:
Much speculation is rife as to wheth
er the Kinds county grand jury will
find indictments against the member,
of the prison board of trustees.
There is really no ground tor specu
lation on this subject. If the CRANE
jury performs its sworn duty, the in
dictments will unquestionably be found
No person is justified in believing
that the grand jury Is going to be
swayed by partizan influence or per
sonal friendship.
The body has fully demonstrated its
courage during the past week. anc
there is justification for the belief tina,
There are ample grounds for true
bills against the members of the prison
board of trustees. Even granting, for
the sake of argument, that the individ-
ual members have not been guilty of
any form of grating. there are still
grounds for their Indictment and re-
moval from Office.
1t cannot be claimed by anybody, not
even the intimate personal friends of
the trustees. that they have peer faith
ful In the discharge of their duties. or
that they have obeyed the statutes pre-
scribing method of management of the
Mississippi pcnitentiary.
Having made this assertion, the
Daily News will now undertake to
prove it.
The three members of the prison
board have undoubtedly been guilty of
misfeasance in Office. For this they
should be indicted and removed from
the positions they now hold.
Section 1884. chapter 1905. of the an
notated code. provides that 1.-The board
of trustees shall be the purchasing,
selling and dIsbursing agents of the
penitentiary. and shall receive all
moneys from the sale of the manufac-
tured goods. crops. end other property
belonging to the penitentiary, and
shall Immediately pay the same into
the state treasury"
The trustees have not fulfilled their
obligations under this chapter. In near
~ every instance during the past five
fNHA an hiOfN1 > pau iilo Tue treasury
by the secretary, and not the trustees.
The legislature. in framing this law.
intended that the trustees personally,
as individuals and as a body, ST ould
pay the moneys derived from the sale
OF products iuto the treasury.
This is amply proven by section 1923
of the same code chapter. which pre-
scribes the form of the receipt warrant
to be used in making treasury pay
ments. The caption of the receipt war
ant reads as follows:
ITO the Auditor of Public Accounts:
Strive have the honor TO apply for a
receipt warrant to pay into the state
treasury the sum of s. account fol-
lowing articles raised on"
The plural we" plainly means that
this receipt warrant must be signed by
tre three members of the board of
trustees. The records at the state
house show that in a large majority of
instances these warrants have been
signed only by the secretary.
If the trustees had complied with the |
letter of the law. and personally made
all payments into the treasury. It would |
have been impossible for Secretary |
Lawrence Yerger to embezzle many |
thousands of dollars belonging to the |
state.
Nowhere in the code chapter is au-
thority conferred on the secretary of
the prison board to receive or pay out
money for the penitentiary. And yet.
M a manner VIGOROUSLY negligent, the
trustees allowed the secretary to as
sumo this function.
II this IS not misfeasance in Office. |
then by what name "a you call IL?
Section 3592 OF the annotated code
provides that the trustees shall "from
time to time examine into and require
accounts of all the matters connected |
with the government. discipline and po-
lice of the ~penltentiary."
This section has not been complied ,
with If it had peer obeyed, the en-
bezzlement of Lawrence Yerger would
have been discovered within a shorter
period than four years.
The plain truth is that all examina-
tons of the books ard accounts by the
present board Of trustees have been ex-
ceedingly shallow and superficial. On
no occasion has any trustee given the
books a thorough or businesslike audit |
ing.
Section 1886 Of the annotated code |
provides that leach trustee shall give |
his entire time and attention to the af-
fairs of the penitentiary. Each men,
Der shall visit each state farm connect |
ed with the penitentiary at least once a !
month, and shall make a report in wri-
ting on each state farm to the monthly
-meeting of the board of trustees"
This section has not been complied
with. One farm sergeant at Parchman,
when testifying under oath before Gov.
Brewer, declared that he had not seen
a prison trustee in fifteen months.
Neither of the members of the board
has visited each farm once per month.
Col. Leroy Taylor. for a period of sew
eral months; was prevented by illness
from dong 80, but his associates have
been negligent in fulfilling the obliga-
tIons OF this statute.
Nor IS it a fact that the trustees
have complied with the requirements
that thu must give their entire time
md ate ton 10 the affairs of the peni-
%entiarS Al least two of the trus-
Gees have farms of their own and de-