Note 285 — Chapter XVIII · The Real Fight Begins.

As early as April 20, 1907, the Chronicle began its objection to Ruef’s confinement. The Chronicle on that date said, in an editorial article:

“It appears that it is costing the city about $70 a day to keep Ruef in jail. That expense should be shut off and shut off now. There is no reason why Ruef should be treated differently from any other criminal who jumped his bail. Incidentally the public is getting impatient to hear that the $50,000 bail already forfeited has been collected. If that were in the treasury we should be more willing to incur this large expense. The public will very sharply criticise authorities who incur such expense for the care of Ruef without promptly collecting the forfeited bail or beginning suit for it. Perhaps it has already been collected and the public has not heard of it.

“The city has provided a jail and a jailer. Let him have Ruef. Of course, he will ‘connubiate’ with him, but what of it? The Sheriff will be under the direction of the Court and if, when otherwise ordered, he grants Ruef privileges not proper, he can himself be put in jail, we suppose. We trust the trial judges will not be discouraged in their efforts to enforce respect to their courts. They will find the people behind them who are already sitting in critical judgment on the legal refinements of the higher courts.

“We suppose that a criminal who has once jumped his bail may be kept in jail when caught. But we see no use of it. By once running away he has warranted the Court in fixing new bail at such a rate that the public would gladly have it forfeited. We could afford to pay something handsome to clear Ruef entirely out of the country and into Honduras, and if we could extort from him a few hundred thousand dollars for the privilege it would be the best trade we ever made. But we do not believe he would run away if the bail were made right. But if he is not to be bailed, let him go to jail, where the total cost of his keep will not exceed 25 or 30 cents a day or whatever it is. And if the Sheriff is not trustworthy—as, of course, he is not—let Elisor Biggy have a key to a separate lock on his dungeon. But there is no sense in spending $70 a day for the keep of only one of our municipal reprobates.”