The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1889-08-21
Net loss in five years.

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Without wasting time on the exaggera-
ton Of the expenses and the incorrectness
of minor details, let us look at the system
OF arithmetic used in this computation.
It will be observed that the total estimated
time consumed by school officers in per
forming their duties under the law is &C
counted as additional expense. as if those
officers devoted no time to school-books
under the old system. as a matter of
fact, the same officers have had charge of
the selection of school-books and con-
sumed fully as much time at it as is esti-
mated for their duties under the new law,
with the exception OF the time consumed
by trustees in selling books. Items 8, T,
), 6, S and 9, amounting to Sl77, 520. must
therefore be removed from the account,
as they do not represent additional eX-
pense at all. They stand only for the ex-
pense of old duties which have been taken
away and replaced by new duties, and are
no more chargeable to the new law than
are the salaries of the teachers who give
instruction from the books.
With the exception OF about $780, all
that remains of the added official service
is S131 200 to trustees for selling books,
but on examining items u and Is it
will be seen that this same service is again
charged as a loss to dealers for not selling
books. In these two items S45O,000 is
charged as a loss to taxpayers because
book dealers would have made that much
out of the taxpayers if the law had not
been passed. If what the book dealers
do not make by selling books is a loss to
the taxpayers, then evidently what the
trustees do make by selling books must be
a gain to the taxpayers, and yet the Jour
nal charges it as a loss also. We assure
the Journal that this system of double
entry bookkeeping will not be taught in
the new books They were printed in
Missouri thirty years ago, you know, and
haven't acquired your novel methods of
lightning calculation. Much as we regret
it, we shall have to deduct $4,000 from
the Journals charges for items - and Is.
This leaves the debit side s710,924 instead
of 81 ,538, "A, or a net gain to the tax
payers Of $4,000 on the Journals show
ing OF the debit side.
Passing to the credit side (item 15) it
will be observed that the Journal comedies
gain OF one-half on the new books, but
reduces it to one-third on account OF the
continuing use of part of the old books
In all the items on the debit side it made
no allowance for this, but charged the
whole expense of school administration to
the new books, and estimated the loss to
pupils and dealers as if all the books were
charged instead of part only In other
words the old books which are not inter-
fered with by the law are accounted as
loss on the debit side, and what would
have been made by changing them is de-
Quoted from the gains on the credit SIDE
This is a repetition of the double entry
system that cannot be allowed, and as the
Journal has deducted one-third from the
gains on account of books not charged we
will have to deduct the same amount from
the losses for the same reason. This
leaves net gain of $4,000 in five years
on the Journals estimates when entered
az any intelligent bookkeePer would enter
them. We ought to deduct about S350,0O0
ION the ebuuldCSb iOF LOSSES on DOCKS IN
the hands of pupils and dealers, but we
do not care to contend about little thing
like that.
We desire TO call attention to the Jour
naPs confession of the enormous profits
made by the trust, in this statement. 1t
has been charging that the Indiana school
book company will make enormous profits
out of the books it furnishes, and as it
admits that its prices are one-half of for
mer prices there must have been clear
profit equal to the entire price to be paid
under the new law over and above what
ever profit will now be made. That is to
say, in furnishing $40, worth OF books
for Eve years, there was a clear profit OF
s, $4,000 over and above any profit that
can possibly be rosde under the new law.
According to the Journals statement
items IL and l3) the book-dealers re-