Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1886-10-25
MALFEAsANCE IN OFFICE.
Comptroller Maynard on the Signal
Service Accounts.

Service Accounts.
WASHINGTON. Oct. 24.-The forthcom-
ing annual report of the Second Comp
troler OF the Treasury, Judge Maynard,
will suggest this question, Nv hat good
has the Second Comptroller Of the Treas
ury ever done? OF what use is the office,
or rather, OF what use was 1t under the
Republican regime? Beyond PLAYING the
part of accomplish, bevond cOnnivlng at
the constant incorporation OF money
by the disbursing officers of the govern
ment, what has it ever done?'
OF the accounts of the signal service
for the past six years, and amounting to
about 81, 1000, Second Comptroller May
nard, as already announced, has disap-
proved OF more than 81, 100000.
'ls 1T merely on account of technical
irregularities, on account of some mere
Formally having been neglected, that
these accounts are disapproved by you %
Post reporter inquired Of Mr.. Maynard
yesterday.
by no means" he replied. GA large
portion Of that million dollars consists of
money which ought never TO have been
| expended. Take telegraphing, for in
stance; there has probably been $3.50. 900
| paid for telegraphing, which instead of
! having been pa out should under the
| United States Treasury, for it was paid
| to subsd zed roads. The wrongdoing
was chiefly by Lieut.. Craig who sue.
| ceeded Howgate) and Lieut.. Mills. I'm
der the present disbursing officer of the
| Signal Once, Capt. Jones, VINO was de-
tailed from the Quartermaster Generals
! Office in June, 1885, the syste m of accounts
| has been greatly improved. OF the mil
| lion and more disapproved not more
than 100000 comes within Capt. Jones'
| time, anu the shortening in his case IS
| prime pail T., perhaps entirely. technical.
| He can probably nave all these accounts
| OF his put straiz hit by producing vouchers
| which he has not vet produced. But
! with his predecessors it appears to have
| been malfeasance in Office. They paid
| three or four times the market price for
| things purchased without competition
| and in violation II the law. The bene.
! nciaries, too, were very narrow ring;
| that Is, the contractors from whom sup
| plies were purchased at three or four
| times their market value were few in
number. No competition invited! 1t
| looks rather like tavOritism. You should
| see the wide difference between the prices
| paid for supplies now and the prices paid
| for the same articles when under Craig
| and Mills as disbursing officers. They
| were unlawfully purchased from a few
| close tavoriles without any competition
| being invited. There is competition now.
l have not formulated charges against
any one. 1t is tor the Secretary OF War
to do that"
! "Why has it required so much time to
! find out these irregularities? Are the ac-
| counts of money expended SIN years ago
being audited only - the reporter
! asked.
| "Well," said Mr.. Maynard. ~ may say
that when / took charge OF this office last
l No fhn to Of
| living unadjusted. All the accounts of
the War, Navy and Interior Departments
come finally under the supervision OF the
| second Comptroller Of the Treasury. In
the first place they are checked by the
accounting officers OF the department to
which they belong; then they pass
through the hands of the auditors OF the
Treasury department before they reacn
the Comptroller. All the accounts audited
by the Second, Third and Fourth
Auditors OF the Treasury, repre-
serting an annual expenditure of
about 100000 900, come to the
Second ompuolIer--that's me-for final
adjustment. Now they accumulate with
the accounting officers OF the disbursing
department, they are delayed more and
accumulate again in the hands OF the
auditors, and they accumulated with the
| second CompToller-0r at least they used
10 do. | am trying to get the arrears of
nv bands and TO pull the work of my
office up TO date. During the past twelve
unths i have disposed Of the accumu-
lated accounts of three years, and now,
| roughly speaking, l may say that all the
accounts representing payments made
up TO July l, 1886, have been
finally examined here. This also
SHOWS that an effort TO pull the
work up to date has been going on all
along the line, for the auditors could not
act upon accounts until they came from
the accounting officers Of the departments
wherein the disbursements were made,
and could not examine them until re-
celved them from the auditors. They
used to be two or three years Old at least
when thew came from the auditors TO the
second Comptroller, and when / took
charge OF this Office eighteen months ago
the accounts OF six years ago were
lying here unad jusled. La regard TO
tue signal service accounts, | no.
ticed That partial examination has
been given TO the accounts of the wears
loS0-lSS4. A few OF them were 'nung upi
as unsatisfactory, but there they Law
without having been Investigated, aud
they might as vel not have been eX.
amned ~ all. ! saw II would be neces-
sary to 90 over all these accounts, those
that were hung up and those that were
not, and examine them all, with the re.
suit as already reported that | found
more than nall of thcm Illegal. The
Items wnicn ! found 'hung up by my
predecessor did rot certainly include ali
that found Objectionable"
"ENamining accounts years after the
! money has becu paid would seem 70 b. a