The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1913-01-10
BLIND TIGERS: HOW TO
REDUCE THE OUTPUT.

Editor of The Dawson News:
/ The sheriff is the Oldest (save one,
/ the coroner officer known to English
law. His rights are supreme, in some
/ respects, over even the bench itself.
! His duty is to conserve the peace of
/ the county, his power to command
every citizen, if need be the judge
of the highest court, TO assist him in
/ tie enforcement of law. He cannot
/ be questioned except on proven NAL
7 ice as to how, when or on whom his
( hand is laid in the enforcement of
/ law or in the attendance on his or
/ ders of the whole power Of the Coun-
| ty. The common law gives him the
| right as custodian of the peace of the
1 county and the protection of the
/ out warrant and this is not repealed,
rights of the citizens to arrest with
but added to by the statute that COM
1 pels him to execute warrants and
summons from the courts and unless
expressly repealed by law his rights
and duties are the same they have
been for more than four hundred
years. Commonly it is said that an
Englishman's and Americans house
is his castle, and no man may enter
without leave" But the common law
never so recognized, and if the sher-
if had reason to believe it was being
used for reasonable purposes (and
all breaches of law was petty trea-
SOM he had right to announce his
office and, as the kings officer, enter
and see if his information was cor
rect, and if need be take all parties
found therein to Jail, either as prin-
cipals in the breach of the law or as
witnesses to the act, but if acceptable
bail was rendered before they were
incaTcerated, of which bail he was
the judge, he was bound to accept,
but after the incarceration he could
be examined as to malice, but not
otherwise. Nor could his prisoners,
whether accused by him of crime or
detained as witnesses, be released
save by the writ of habeas corpus
No man lower than a knight OF. the
Shire and worth 100 pounds could
be sheriff, and he must be of sound
mnd and discreet to know his duty
and brave to execute it.
Some weeks since | heard of coun-
sci going to prison and demanding
that his client be released and his
weapon restored to him, and the
weakened jailer complied. Such
officers should be bounded from the
office they disgrace and placed where
they could be made to suffer all the
penalties of aiding and abetting the
escape of prisoners. Some time since
in Georgia a coroner placed in the
hands of the sheriff a warrant for
homicide. The warrant instead of
being served was handed to the kins-
man of the man accused, and the
editor of the newspaper published in
the place had to go there to get the
verdict of the cOToner's jury. No
matter about the standing of the
parties nor of the subsequent acquit-
tai of the accused, the sheriff had
but one duty, and that was to incar-
cerate the party named in the war
rant and let him be released by ha-
beas corpus proceedings was done
after the grand jury had acted and
found a bill. And because of his
failure he should have been impeach-
ed by the grand jury and expelled
from his office as a lesson to others.
He has no right to judge of the
laws righteousness or unrighteOus-
ness, but to execute the law. His
conscientious scruples do not excuse
him. When he accepts the office of
sheriff he places himself where weak
opinions Of the righteousness of the
laws have no weight. My father was
conscientiously opposed to capital
punishment, but as sheriff he eXecut-
ed tw0 men. One he imperiled his
own life to save from a resCuing par
ty.
So that the first step in decreasing
blind tigers is sheriffs who knowing
their duty dare to do it. In this
connection we might improve on our
constitution by yacating the Office Of
sheriff by suspension by the govern
or when he failed to perform his du-
ty pending trial by the next sue
ceeding grand jury into the merits
Of the case, and might require candi-
dates for the office to be examined
on the common law and if they failed
to pass the examination on this law
required by attorneys for admission
to the bar let this bar their candida
cy for the office.
My next article will deal with the
responsibilities of counties, citizens
and ways to enforce the performance
of these duties. Respectfully,
ANDREW P. RIVES.
Cuthbert, Ga, Jan. s, 1913
w. R, Fox, 1875 Washington ST.,