The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1930-12-04

the men who are working under the
ground, and whose lives and health
and limbs are dependent to a great
extent upon the maintenance and en-
forcement of this law. You are there
fore asked to give close attention to
this question.
The legislature has determined that
it is a very serious crime to carry
deadly weapons concealed about the
person, because experience has shown
that the man who carries dangerous
or deadly weapon about his person
and who gets into personal difficulties
or gets into a high state of excite
ment, is likely to be led into the COM
mission of homicide or dangerous as
sault. If evidence is presented before
you showing that persons are guilty
of this crime, or if you know of in
stances wherein you have reason to
believe that this law is being violated
it will be your duty to make full in
vestigation and return indictments
wherever the evidence may so justify.
| don't know whether you have any
disorderly pool rooms in this county
but my experience has been in other
counties that many of these pool
rooms are schools of crimes and
law violations of all kinds. Boys and
young men congregate there under
conditions whereby there are no res
trictions and all kinds of blasphemy,
lewdness and crime are Matched in
such places. 1t may be that some of
your people know how to run a pool
room in a decent and honest way and
under such conditions as will not be to
the detriment of the youth OF your
community, but generally that is not
the case. l wish, therefore, you
would make inquiry as to how the
pool rooms of the community are be-
ing run and as to whether the law is
being violated in that connection.
Another matter which under the
law l am required to call to your at
tention is the sale, handling or giving
away of narcotic drugs. Especially
since the passage of the Volstead Act
it is said that narcotic drugs are be-
! ing sold and given away in place OF
Intoxicating liquors, to such an extent
that some communities may be great
ly damaged and injured by the hand
ling of these drugs, to the ruin OF the
health and morals of the people. L
ask you to pay especial attention to
that statue and to investigate fully
any violations which may come to
your attention.
| mentioned the automobile awhile
ago. In every county of this state we
have had more or less of violations
of the automobile laws. The question
of the observance of the traffic laws
| by everyone who drives car is OF the
most serious Importance to everybody
who has occasion to use the roads and
highways of the county. We have
had numerous cases in Allegany coun-
| ty in the past year where death has
resulted from reckless driving, and if
death does not result, very often SER
ious injuries occur by reason of vio-
lations of this law Now it is impor-
tant that the people of this county
should understand that the automobile
law is going to be enforced strictly.
1t will be your duty to examine the
Jail and the court house
and to see whether they are being
maintained as they ought to be, par
ticularly the Jail, where men and
women are sometimes imprisoned
when they have not been guilty of any
crime. 1t would seem sometimes to
be very serious defect in our law,
vet during our last term of court we
had two traversers confined in jail,
both charged with the same crime,
one of whom was required to stay in
Jail for the period of eight months be-
cause he had no friend who was able
or willing to furnish satisfactory
bond, and yet who upon trial of his
case was acquitted, while the other,
who was found guilty, was released
under bond during this period. Now
we boast of the Uniformity and the
impartiality of our laws, and yet it
does not seem exactly just and fair that
one should be imprisoned and held for
a long period and the other released,
simply because the one does not have
a friend who can qualify to go on his
bond. l mention this merely to call
to your attention the fact that some
of these persons so held may not be
guilty of any crime, and therefore
they are entitled to all the comforts
it is reasonably possible to furnish
while being so held. They are en-
titled at least to good, clean, whole
some food, to comfortable quarters
and to sufficient warm bed clothing
at night, and l wish you to see to it
that the Jail in particular is being
properly maintained and that the per-
sons there held are being properly
cared for and maintained.