New-York tribune., 1874-09-18
A LOCAL BOARDS DEFENSE.


Two of the Commissioners of Charities and
Correction Mr. Bowen dissenting submitted Yesterday
reply the embodied In the report OF MI
Howe, Commissioner OF Accounts, published on sept q
The rst part OF the defense Of Commissioners
and Stern sa violent attack upoh MI Howe' onars"K
him with williul misrepresentation and nsnuauons'
and oailiBg attention to the "suimus which plainly
characterzes tue report Of the Commissioner" This
language ia 40 needessy Incorporate that James
Bowen the other Commissioner declined TO sign the re-
port and in appended TO the reply says ne ac-
cords to Mr. what he claims for himseu tnat no
has IN ali fnithfunes endeavored TO discharge his duty
without much regard to consequences In the report
the last word is printed "conscence" thus comcaly
pervertfng Mr.. Bowers meaning. The more important
parts OF the reply of Messrs Lambeer and Stern, omit
ting the abuse Of Mr.. Howe. are as follows:
At the very commencement OF his report the Commis-
sion BY our own Board Of the investigation into the
accounts OF department. and leaves the board OF
was motion ny the Commissioners OF
Accounts The truth and It was well known to the
Commissioners of Accounts that an investigation into
accounts Department was urgently requested ss
early as Sept lss by resolution OF our ~ SoSs nn,
number called upon Mr.. Wheeler, asking that Tue
OF Accounts w0u M nSns Is7s two
OF number again called on the OF Ac
the Board made this request 70 Mr.. Howe in person
When the present Board came into office on May 10,
hsS been IN IN capacity in the employ Of the Depart
ment for several years Shortly after our accession 70
Office discovered that his books we're not bsanoeu,
and in not even posted , we at n once
instructed him 70 balance the books snd @ ySc
he for by various finding in Septem
Sncsd me BosTd asked the commissioners of Accounts
10 examine into the books OF tne DepartnenE Az
report thst "none OF the Commissioners were ap-
parently aware of the condition OF the books IT'S
needless to that our Board failed TO receive tnat
adyioe or assistance from the Commissioners Of Ae-
counts which time hoped they had the aDnly
pedent to avail ourselves OF the knowledge and expe-
enoe Of the boOkkeeper who had been charge Of tae
postponed time TO time uptl we became SATISFIED
O5 h e 70 nv ese Of who
now has charge OF the books aud 10 rapidly bringing
them into proper shape and order. -
Ii is wholly false that q balance OF $S,S6o 81 In the
Third National Bank was discovered through the efforts
the present Board within after their accession
10 Office. Aud yet Mr. Howe has the efrontery TO say
that he found that the Commissioners were not aware OF
its existence As the old bookkeeper announced that
there discrepancy between the accounts Of the
Finance Department and our Department. we Thought
balance be there until the settlement OF
TINS ths !SS rss Of per ans
the rate allowed on all the CITY deposits the city
over, the transfer Of this 10 the CITY Chamberlain
was our act and not Mr.. Howe's.
another instance of Mr. Howe's desire to prejudice
US in your estimation and that OF the public, ne an-
nounces as very startling fact, that the cashbook
a. 1874 had not been written up since May 3D. 1873 Now
truth about the whole matter is this BY the present
OF the department must be made by and through
the Finance Department, and we can ana 90 make no
money the outdoor poor which cash account Is Kept
by the superintendent OF tue Out doer poor ana Is not
present Cnarer The secretarys book has always been
Qury on the part Of Mr. Howe would have ELECTED that
TACT. The cash-book which Mr. Howe found had not
old cashbook Kept under the former SYSTEM when such
important book, In which, we'll In the
ueiyed after the inauguration of the
t But the entry OF these cash items Ia both books was
unnecessary and oashbOok kept by the Secretary
has been the only needed or In use at the Ceura
Oce, and that book was at the time OF the commence
Ment OF Mr. Howe's examination, and at all times and
now is properly kept aud balanced at frequent intervals
cash on 6aRd for which the Chamberlain receipt is re-
ceiyed. We now proceed to take up Mr. Commissioner
Tue first charge is that the present Commissioners
when they entered their duties made inventory
OF The stock property hand belonging to the De-
parment received by the present from the old
Department inventory OF the stock OF supplies
on the 1t Of January in each We found.
assuming duties that the storekeepers books were
correctly kept aud on examination we became satisfied
that the stock OF supplies hand correspondent with
the stock which the torekeepers BOOKS called Iori we
necessity therefore, OF taking an inventory at
that time, Ga jan l. 1874 the rule Of the department
carried out and the annual inventory made out OF
the stock OF supplies oG hand.
IL Mr.. Howe charges that separate accounts were
kept with persons from whom purchases were made
10 this charge answer that such accounts were not
Kept at first iu our Department, but have been Kept
since Jan l. 1874 but at all times the ekeepers
books have contained correct copy or all the invoices
The prices OF the articles therein.
III Tue balance presented by the bookkeeper
April % have been incorrect. The condition OF
the books when we came into office and the long
delay getting them into condition we have already
dyerted TO- well to the causes 0f the delay and
already said the books Ia the charge OF pres
ent bookkeeper rapidly being brought into order
and evil complained OF has been Will DO soon fully
remeded The books at the Central Office are books OF
original entry and are not copies OF che books Of the
original bills invoices returned from the storekeeper
upon the books OF storekeeper, and then for
warded the Central ONCE where the bills or invoices
are entered in books of that office 1t is intended
mat le two sets Of books respects should be
mutual checks the on the other and IL is difficult TO
conceive why this system should De considered
ground OF complaint against the management II our
department.
" IL is not a mere theory, Mr. Howe implies. Of
the department. that purchases Except drugs and
plies Tor outdoor poor made for thedepsrtment are
of the store out an established system faithfully
carried with such exceptions however, as common
sense convenience and economy demand. II is OF
course physically impossible for any one man TO receive
weigh and count all the supplies daily received fer the
900 people under our charge distributed among
some Institutions which are scattered over an area of
some 80 square miles. Mr. Howes charges on this score
are simply frivolous and absurdwhe his charge that
no books containing record OF the goods delivered
were kept at the bakery on Bsekweis Island wholly
w. Mr. HoWes fifth charge Is substantially as follows:
The goods received by the stSTeseeper are
Mr. Howe makes wilful misrepresentation OF the facts
Notwithstanding he made fully acquainted with the
sysem of the dsrfDuon OF and supplies carried
out by our stOrekeeper T1is system was carefully ex
plalned to him IN ITS details ana ne emphsucaly ap
vi Tn his sixth charge Mr.. Howe states: Upon the
regulations made 10y the siorekeeper, the commission
ers In ther discretion, the supplies therein speoi
fed ito be purchased. In making these purchases II
appears regard Is PAID by the Commissioner TO the
provision OF the 9st Of Chapter 3S5, Laws OF
1873" This allegation OF Mr. Howelthat IN making pur-
ehases OF supplies no regard rs psa Vy US 70 Sne pIos
untrue aud MIR. Howe must have known when he made
osia as h%sS mad only to consult the flies Of fhs oiy
Record the oihola paper where adversements OF this