From 1830, when Florence was incorporated, very few laws were enacted by the town until the jail was completed, July 3, 1885. Most of the ordinances that were passed from 1850 to 1860 were of the type which we call today Blue Laws—such as playing ball on Sunday; firing a gun on Sunday; and a stringent law called the goose and duck law that called for a heavy fine against anyone who allowed their geese or ducks to parade the streets; also a law that carried a fine of $1.00 for the first offense, $1.50 for the second offense and $9.50 for the third offense against any store keeper that would sell any article form his store on Sunday unless there was a funeral at the cemetery. (I presume the trustees felt the deceased should be well fed before they were interred.)

          When Nelson Lloyd moved here in 1856, he became town clerk and a better system of keeping records was inaugurated; and we notice that the clerks, and a great number of ordinances were passed from 1860 to 1898. During this period an ordinance was passed establishing a chain gang. This ordinance stated that all person convicted in police court and unable to pay their fines would be made to break rock on the streets of Florence until the fine was paid.

          Our first visitor to the jail was a colored man by the name of Scales who had been arrested by the marshall and charged with breach of the peace. The violation occurred on Sunday and the prisoner was lodged in jail. On the following Monday he was taken to the Town Hall and he pleaded guilty to the charge, and the police judge assessed a fine of $5.00 and costs against him. Being unable to pay the fine, the judge ordered the marshall to remove him to jail.

          Now the citizens became restless because the town taxes were being used to pay for the meals to feed the prisoner. (His meals cost 75 cts. a day and this was out of reason.) So the town go busy and had rock hauled on Shelby Street and the prisoner was put to work crushing the rock at 23 cts. a perch. His fine costs were $8.00 and he seldom broke over a perch a day; and with the marshall's salary of $1.50 per day to keep him from escaping, was more than the taxpayers could stand. "What a spendthrift judge we have" was the talk of the town.

          Ways were sought to declare the office vacant on account of the expense of feeding this prisoner and paying the marshall $1.50 a day to watch him crush 23 cts. worth of rock; but remember, the old judge was equal to the occasion. When the turmoil was at its peak he told the marshall he would oversee the prisoner while he went to dinner. During the absence of the marshall, the judge approached the prisoner and asked him he was tired of his job. "I sure am boss" replied the prisoner. The judge then told him to walk out Center Street slowly so he would not create any suspicion, but when he reached the grave yard to start running and never come back to Florence. He did this to the satisfaction of the judge and he has never been here to this day.

          When the election day came next year, the old judge got every vote except one, and everyone had a suspicion that the vote was cast by the marshall because he lost his job of $1.50 a day.

MORAL: " A wise old owl sat in a oak,
The more the saw the less he spoke,
The less the he spoke the more he heard,
Why can't we be like this old bird?"