The Republican., 1925-06-04
IRCUIT COURT RECESSES
UNTIL MONDAY MORNING
The Address of Judge Walsh to
the Grand Jury Printed in
It's Entirety Today

IOr GaTTeIC county convened MONDAY
morning at ten o'clock with Judge
William c. Walsh on the bench, who
delivered the charge to the grand jury
after it had been sworn. The charge
to this body is of such Importance to
the citizens of Garrett county in gen
eral that it is given in full in The
Republican today.
The Court room was crowded to the
doors when court convened and those
present listened with attentive care to
the Courts charge.
The grand jury had as its foreman,
Mr.. Harry J. Black, of Friendsville,
and is composed of many of the best
citizens of the county.
After calling the docket and enter
ing motions, Judge Walsh said, in his
charge:
Gentlemen of the Grand Jury:
You have been selected from the
citizens of the county to perform the
grave duty of investigating the gen.
eral condition of affairs throughout
the community, and more particularly
to determine who is responsible for
the violations of the criminal law,
which will be called to your attention.
The grand jury originally was an
informing as well as an accusing
body; that is, its members, collected
from various parts of the county, ad-
vised each other of the condition of
affairs in their respective localities,
and called attention to any violations
of the law which had come under
their observation or been reported to
them. The right to do this still ex-
lists, and any member of your body
who knows of violations of the law
should consider it his duty to call
such transgressions to your attention,
though under our modern practice,
the great majority Of the cases you
will consider will be placed before you
by the States Attorney.
So far as the Court is advised, the
general condition of affairs in the
county, with one exception that will
be mentioned later, is excellent, but
this, of course, does not mean that
wShere should be any lack of diligence
b your part in investigating condi
~JlOIlS. UGCduSG IIlClC may NC ilOIISl
about which the Court is not advised.
However, you have the advantage of
living in a county which is largely
agricultural, and which has few towns
large enough to provide the congested
conditions under which crime is most
apt to flourish, and hence the history
of the county shows that the laws are
usually we'll observed.
There is one change taking place in
the county, however, to which l think
I should direct your attention, and
that of other citizens. A large water
power plant is being erected here, and
the work incident to its initial con-
struction brought many new people
to the county and doubtless there
were some among these whose obedi-
ence to the law did not measure up
to the standard to which you are ac-
customed. Now that the dam has
been completed doubtless most of
these people have left, and whatever
problems their presence cEeated have
been met, but the large lake which
the dam has formed in the county will
give r;se to new problems. No doubt
amusement resorts of all sorts will in
time be located on the shores of this
lake, and while many, probably the
great majority of them, will be en-
tirely proper places devoted to health
and recreation there may be few
which are not proper. There is al
ways certain class of people who
wish to violate the law, and some Of
these are continually seeking new To-
cations for their practices. If moth
ing is done to prevent their opera
tions, they flourish and their number
increases, but if proper steps are tax
en- in the beginning to let such people
know that their infractions of the law
will not be tolerated, they soon leave,
and their associates and those SINH
larly inclined, learning of the commu-
nity's attitude, do not attempt to To-
cate in it. do not know that any re-
sorts at all have been established
here as a result of the presence of
this beautiful body of water, nor do
/ mean to intimate that the Court
feels that any resorts which may be
established will be illegal and harm
full, but | deem it proper at this time
to direct your attention to the posi-
bilities which the situation presents,
so that you and the authorities gen
eli ally CdIl nave IllS IldGGSI III lIlILlu,
and be prepared to meet any situation
which may arise in connection with it.
There was at one time some ques-
ton as to whether or not the various
license laws in the State of Maryland
relating to the sale of Intoxicating
liquor had been repealed by the adop-
tion of the Eighteenth Amendment to
the Constitution of the United States,
but it has now been determined by
Z be Court of Appeals of Maryland,
End by the Supreme Court of the
United States, that these license laws
are still in force, and hence any per-
son whom you find has violated these
laws should be indicted. Some diff
Guilty is being experienced in various
parts Of the country with the en-
torcement of prohibition laws, and in
many places differences of opinion ex-
9st regarding the wisdom of such laws
put so far as the Courts and their Of
ncers are concerned, and so far as Of
ticers Charged with the duty of en-
forcing the laws Of the land are CON
cefned, there is only one attitude to
take on the matter. Whatever law