The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1900-02-21
TWELVE MEN IN IRONS NHY BILLS ARE DELAYED
SLACK BUSINESS METHODS ARE
RESPONSIBLE.
Goods Were Delivered on the Mere
Direction to Charge it to the Board
of Health"

There seems to be a great deal Of
street talk to the effect that there is
delay in the payment of bills due from
the Board of Health funds for supplies
and material furnished in connection
with the detention camps, and general
ly in connection with the efforts to
stamp out the plague. Some complaints
lay the blame on the Auditor General,
some on the finance committee, some
on the Board of Health and some else
where.
George r. Carter says that the main
trouble is due to the lax and slack busi-
ness methods which business men have
allowed themselves to fall into. Incl
dentally there have been some red-tape
delays due to the exigencies of the sltu-
alton, but these, though annoying, have
been slight in comparison with the
others, and have been practically rem
euied.
"The finance committee, with c. M
Cooke as chairman" said Mr.. Carter
was organized for the purpose of re-
| lieving President Wood of the Board OF
Health of the work of auditing and ap-
| proving bills, so as to to permit him
to give his time to other matters, and
at the same time to facilitate the audit
ing and payment of bills. We have
overcome the delays growing out OF
red-tape, so that now responsibility for
delay falls back on the person to whom
the money is due, and in this way.
When a bill is presented to this COM
mittee it is at once sent to the deten-
| ton camp or the person ordering the
/ goods or material for approval. In
! many cases we have sent bills to sew
| eral persons in order to get it to the
right one. But they are not always re-
| turned promptly. OF course we cannot
| approve a bill unless it has been ap-
proved by the person who contracted
| it, and not then unless the person con-
| tracing it was authorized by the Board
| of Health to do so.
IF the people want their bills paid
promptly, let them see to it that the
bills come here approved by the person
| who ordered the goods. Or if they de-
pend on us to send them to the person
| ordering the goods, for approval, let
| them see to it that this approval is Sc
| cured. We cannot run around to do
| this. It is more than ought to be eN-
| pected of us to send them out for ap-
| proVal. They ought to have that ap-
proval before they are presented here.
There are some firms who have made it
| a point to have every bill properly
vouched before presentation. These
have experienced no delay in getting
their money. Other firms who sent In
their bills without these approVals have
since gone to work and secured them.
and they are avoiding delay.
| But most of the kicks and talk
comes from people who didn't take the
| trouble to find out who ordered the
goods or services at the time they were
ordered and so now do not know who
to go to get this approval. But we
don't either. Merchants and others de-
livered goods or furnished service on
somebody's mere direction to charge
them to the Board of Health, not
knowing who the person was giving the
direction, or whether he had authority
to make the order apparently on the
theory that the Board of Health would
pay every bill presented without in
quiry. 1t was not business like pro-
ceeding for the merchant to do this.
and it would be, If possible, still less
business like for us to approve a bill
without some showing that it was au-
thorized.
ITO sum up, people who have got
. their bills in proper shape for presen-
4 tation and auditing are experiencing
! little delay. People who haven't are