The evening times., 1898-12-07
PRICES PAID FOR
STAPLE SUPPLIES
Difference Said to Exist in
Charitable Institutions.
NAY BE INVESTIGATED
No Inform System of Account
ing in Departments.
NAY BE INVESTIGATED
Report of Superintendent Levi,
Says Practices in Violation of
LAW Are in Vogue.

llleS eluS t3.r To become a lliLIeI Oh uiS-
cussion before the presen; Congress.
Senator James Mcmillan. a member of
the Joint Select Committee of the Senate
which was appointed to investigate the
charities and reformatoiios of the District
OF Columbia. has written To the District
Commissioners informing them he recent
ly learned that charitable institutions
which receive appropriations from Con-
gress pay great variety of prices for
the same articles. and that there is no uni
form system of accounting either at the
District Building or at the United States
Treasury.
Commissioner Wight, on behalf of the
Board of District Commissioners. yester-
day replied that there was undoubtedly a
variety i'm the prices paid by the insti-
utions for different articles. The amonnts
are as carefully audited by the District
auditor hc stated. '-as i possible under
the existing law.
"A praviso was inserted in the last Dis
trict appropriation bin, which, had it been
enacted into law. would have enabled us
tn control these purchases, bat il was
stricken out by the Senate. which leaves
th. matter iust where ii was, so that the
only superyision the auditor can have over
these accounts l., first, to see mat the
money i spent in accordance with lhe
general terms of the appropriation. ahd'
second, that there are no errors IN the
calculations, and | am Informed thaJ the
Treasury officials take the same view To
this extent the auditing of these accounts
il uniform.
THE Institutions over which the Com
rnissfan.-r< exercise control in the matter
Of purchases are the Washington Asy-
!um. Freedmau's Hospital. the Industrial
Home school and the Municipal Night
Lodging House All other institutions are
controlled 10y boards OF directors ana the
Commissioners have no authority 10 direct
them as to what they shall buy or the
price they shall pay, the appropriations
Of Congress being considered as Sratui-
tous contributions To be expended under
The direction Of lawfully appointed dl-
r,ctors and trustees The Commissioners
have. however. ondeavortd 20 advise them
as 10 contract prices and have urged them
to buy as reasonably a. possible
.I think" concludes Mr.. Wight, ii
should be borne in mind that these in
sJ.tutionS vary i'm their needs; that they
cannot all use the same quality Of goods.
and must. Therefore. necessarily pay diff
ferent prices,
This very matter of accounts, reports
and purchases was made the subject OF
very fun and lucid treatment in the an
nual report Of Herbert W. Lewis, the Dis
rict superintendent Of charities. submit
ted 10 the District Commissioners by him
recently and by them transmitted to
Congress.
Superintendent Lewis stated that there
.yere practices in vogue which We're in vi
olation of the laws governing accounts. as
Wen as recent regulations Of the Treas
1Na - He stated
found that accounts wholly Irregular as
to form. had been accepted at the Treas
ury without question. because OF directions
given by former officers of that depart
nent that no questions were 20 be raised
regarding such accounts. II seems that
the appropriations Tor charitable purposes
were considered as gratuitieS not subject
10 the ordinary rules Of the department.
After consultation with the auditor for
the State and other departments a cir u
lar was issued calling attention TO the
provisions Of the law and the Treasury
regulations and stating that after Au-
gust ], 1885,. compliance with these re-
quiremeut would be expected. me- that
time there have been but slight d5p.rt-
ures occasionally from the spirit Of the
requirements when strictly construed.
4 new system of quarterly reports was
then devised and blanks furnished ali n
stitutions at the close of the first quar-
Ter. Upon the receipts of the reports at
the end OF eacn quarter tabIlatel state
ment Of the financial condition and ope-
rations of the institutions reporting 10
the superintendent OF charities was pre-
pared and submitted to the select com
Inittee of which Senator Mcmillan is a
! member.
The statement served to bring out the
wide difference in the care given, at the
! different institutions receiving Govern
ment aid based on total expenditures AMI
total days board furnished to inmates,
ranging from l3 cents to S144
In his report Superintendent Lewis
called attention to the striking difference
at the end of the second quarter in the
| prices which were paid, by the purchas-
ing agents of the institution, for sta pie
articles of supplies. In some instances
he stated there was a difference of from
% 10 20 per cent in the prices pad FIR
supplies which were presumably similar
in quality and value.
Various reasons We're assigned in re-
plies for such inequalities" stated Super
intendent Lewis. some of which were
good and others We're not. Some of those
which had been paying high prices for
supplies at once made efforts to secure
satisfactory goods at prices approximate
ing those paid by the District for supplies
furnished to institutions wholly under
District control. Others made no such Of
fort
Superintendent Lewis explains that dur
ing the fourth quarter of the fiscal year
prices and amounts were paid for fresh
meats as follows: Beef, 1874 pounds at
10 cents, 500. so; corned beef. 205 pounds at
cents. s16.40; lamb, 800 pounds, at Is
cents $3.50; veal, 254 pounds at Is cents,
$3.50. The total amount paid by this
institution was 1891 40 Mr.. Lewis stated
that if a certain other institution in the
city had purchased the same meats it
would have paid the following prices:
Beef 1874 pounds at cents amount
$1IS.26; corned beef, 265 pounds at cents
STOPS; lamb, 322 pounds at 0.O945 per pound
SS0.42; veal 234 pounds at 10 cents per
pound, $3.50. The totals show saving
of Sl4901, which might have been accom-
pliShed had the managers of the first in
stitution eXerted themselves to secure
favorable prices as did those IF the sec
ond
This is an extreme example" stated
Superintendent Lewis, ''of the actual
working of the system which places pub
lie moneys at the disposal of boards of
managers who are engrossed with other
affairs and are unable to give its cx-
penditure the personal attention necessa-
ry to economy. This same thing is obsery-
able in less degree in many other expend'
lures, and how great would be the saw
ing under better plans can only be con-
jectured. Neither the superintendent of
charities nor the Commissioners at pres
ent have authority to control the eXpendi-
ture of appropriations made for the sup