The evening times., 1895-11-19

| schedules.
Mr.. Petty then discussed the question
whether taxes should be collected once 4
year or twice; tells how the Dockery law
has affected District affairs, suggests the
abolition of witness fees in police court to
prevent cases gotten up for the sake of the
fees and pleads for larger allowance for
the police and fire department pension
funds. He says:
The question as TO which is the better
mode of collecting taxes-in installnients
as now, or in a single pa ymcnt. as was form
erly the CUSTOM is the subject of much dis
cussion. As a means of Iessening the liza.
bility to error on the part of the tax
payer and of tightening the burdens OF the
assessors and collectors offices, one
! payment would prove or mutual ad-
vantage to the public and the government.
| On the other hand the possible hardsbips
it might work jim the cases of persons with
limited means ana small holdings who
| would find IL difficult to meet their obli-
| cations. Further embarrassment would
be sensibly felt in business and monetary
circles as consequence of the withdra wal
at one time of SO large an amount from the
| ordinary channels OF circulation.
WHEN TO MAKE PAYMENTS.
III however, it be deemed expedient
10 adopt the proposed system, the month
i'll which payment may be made is a matter
of Importance. Some favor May, while
| others incline To November. Should the
| former month be chosen the United States
would be called upon to support the District
| government from the commencement OF
| the fiscal year-a period Of ten months
| incurring the risk of failure To receive
| in the May collections n sufficient amount
TO reimburse its outlay in excess of the
one-1alf it is required by law To CON
| tribute. This would not be so were No
| veniber chosen.
Il find in conversation with many OF
our citizens that an impression prevails that
| taxes are collected year i'll advance OF
| their disbursement and lie in upproductive
| idleness from the date Of their collection
until the passage of the law which author
| iZes their expenditure. That is to say, that
! moneys received in November, SO TO speak,
/ are locked up in the Treasury until the
! succeeding Congress releases them by ap-
| preparation.
LAS a matter of fact. our appropriations
| for a given year are made months before the
| collections for that year begins and are
! based, not upon moneys already in hand,
/ but upon estimates of what we expect to
receive. To correct this misapprehcnsion
the following statement from the present
| years transactions is submitted:
THE AUDITORS RECEIPTS.
Cash balance to credit of the District of
Columbia in United States Treasury July 1,
1895, as per exhibit "A" herewith, S429,.
O90.99; collected in July, 1895, ST5,392.14;
collected in August, 1895, $50, 963 81; col.
lected in September, 1895, S50,30933: coli
iected in October, 1895, S297, ,693.; Total
collections July / to October 81, 1895,
| $500, ,ifS.T9; add amount due from United
States, S9O3, ,44S.79. Total revenues, Dis
| trict of Columbia, July 1 To October 81,
1895, S1,SO6,S97 .5s.
EXPENDITURES.
acquisitions paid by United States Treas
ury in July, 1895, S732, ,s51 81 requisi.
tions paid by United States Treasury in
August, 1s9h, S571 ,549.77; acquisitions
paid by United States Treasury in Septeni-
ber, 1895, $685., ,Gl3.07; acquisitions paid
by United States Treasury in October,
1895, 1856, ,490.56; total payments, by
United States Treasury, July to October
81, 1895, S2,O72,939.71: deduct reve-
nues of District of Columbia, as above.
81 SOC ,S97 .oS; expenditures in excess of
receipts, November / 1895, S266,042. 13.
1T is clear from the foregoing statement
that on the first day or November, 1895,
the District treasury was empty, and the
government in debt to the United States.
The collections for the month, therefore,
instead of being boarded, until Congre
shall appropriate them. will be used to pay
this Indebtedness and to meet our obliga-
tions.
ACCOUNTS CLOSED.
"UIdcr the operation of the act of July
81, 1884, famliarly known as the Dock
cry law, many accounts of former boards
of Commissioners, which, with their un.
available balances, have cumbcred the books
of the departments for years, have been adj
iusted and closed.
THE new system of accounting, in its
application to the District. has produced
some good results in addition to the clos
ing of the accounts hereinbeforc mentioned.
1t is flexible, reducing to a minimum the
friction which is more or less incidental
to a review of the action of one depart.
ment by the Officers Of another, and. speeds
the adjustment and settlement of our ac.
counts as rapidly as could be desired. In
these particulars it is an Improvement upon
the old method, but in respect of safe
guarding against fraud or error the latter
Is, in my opinion, much to be preferred. OF
course, my observation is confined to Dis-
trict accounts.
I'm pursuance of the act of February 8,
1895, providing for the payment to con-
tractors under the late board of public
works of the difference between the rates
stipulated in their contracts and the sched-
ule of prices afterward adopted and known
as board rates." S27,5OO worth of three
sixty-fiye bonds have been sold and paid
over to claimants or their representatives.
The law authorizing the bonds. act of
June 20, s74, limits their amount to $15.-
100000, of which S14,958, 300 have al
ready been issued, leaving on hand but
$4,000.
SUSPICION OF CoLLUsIoN.
The expenditures for witness fees in the
police court are rapidly increasing, it
being estimated that $1,000 will be re.
quired for the service &c the fiscal year
1897. There are many Uses which prove
upon trial to be so frivolous in their char
acter as TO awaken in the minds of the
court officials a suspicion of collusion be-
tween the accused and the witnesses for
to protect the government, refusing in
every instance where fraud was apparent to
allow the issue Of certificates of attend
ance, but the abuse contiESles and grows
apace. 1t may be well lu consider the
question with reference To q change in the
law SO as To decrease the allowance from
$1.25 per diem to a nominal sum or abolish
it altogether.
II should consider myself derelict in a
sacred duty il i failed TO urge the impor-
tauce of continuing and increasing the ap-
propriations respectively for the police and
firemeu's pension fund. But for the con-
sent of Congress at its last session to
supplement- the fines and contributions of
members by limited sum from the Dis
trict treasury there would have been much
want among the pensioners
las it was, the amount appropriated, to-
gethpr with the rpceipts frnm salary aScecc-