New-York tribune., 1901-12-29
ALDEN is A DEFAULTER.
AOCoUNTS OF ACTING TREASURER OF
CHARITIES DEPARTMENT
$3,1S7 81 SHORT

The disappearance of Charles NJ Alden sec
retary and acting treasurer of the Department
OF Public Charities and acting trustee of the
court Fund Cash Account, was explained yester-
day. when the Commissioners of Accounts re-
ported to Mayor Van Wyck that Alden was a
defaulter in the amount of So, 1877 81, at least
1t was indicated in the report that Alden fed
from the city when he knew that a shortage
in his accounts was about TO be discovered
After the Commissioners of Accounts had
dlted the receipts and expenditures of the De-
partment of Charities. the report says, an
aminer asked Alden to have his handbook writ
ten UP and his cashbook balanced. In the week
following December IA Alden promised to have
his books in shape Immediately after Christ
mas. They had not been written up in several
months On Saturday, December 81, Alden dis
appeared. Two days later the of SOL 15
was found in his safe. His bankbooks and
checkbooks were missing. Inquiry at the Astor
Place Bank, where his account was kept. showed
that Alden had remaining there only S6S 81 al
though examiner had verified balance of
S2,o2o 10. which Alden had in the bank Au
gust 16 Taking the August balance a start
ing point, adding the known receipts and sub
stracting the known disbursements, the Com
missioners of Accounts reported yesterday on
Alden's cash account as follows:
Balance which should have
Accounted for as follows:
Balance in Astor Place Bank. ..............S6 S6S 27
100 OF
Shortage ascertaned So. 1877 81
The statement is followed by the declaration
that the Commissioners of Accounts. because of
the incomplete state of account books in Alden's
office and the absence of his bankbooks and
checkbooks not able at present fully to GER
tify as to the amount of his deficit acting
of
treasurer of the Department of Public Charities
The commissioners also attack the method of
keeping accounts in the Department Of Charities
They refer to a report in 1899. which declared
that the manner of keeping books and records
in the Department of Public Charities for the
boroughs of Manhattan and The Bronx is
tremey lax, and that the system in requires
complete reorganization"
John w Keller the Commissioner of Charities,
was excited yesterday when he learned that the
Commissioners of Accounts had made report
on Alden's shortage. He said they should have
consulted with him before making such a report
public. Later the commissioner said:
Il do not wish to get into any controversy with
the Commissioners of Accounts, and they have
been very obliging to me. All can say is that
if there were any lax methods they should have
found them out and reported them long ago, and
not waited until shortage is discovered
Mr.. Keller said that police search for Alden
missing man, far he knew. At No. 129
East Ninety-third-st. it was said that Mrs
Alden had received no word from her husband
and too III to strar gers
Alden acting trustee and guardian OF
property. besides being the private secretary OF
Commissioner Keller. When any money or
other property was left by patient in one of
the charity hospitals, and no claimant appeared
after the patients DEATH Alden took charge or
the property. AS there is a property clerk In
each Of the hospitals and several books are kept
for this purpose it will be some time before any
satisfactory report be had regarding possi-
BILE deficiencies thefts Commissioner Keller
says that for the last few months Alden has
kept no books. The property left by patients
who die in the hospitals should be turned over
to the Public Administrator. AS yet II Is not
known whether Alden turned over all such
property.