The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1903-05-20

mony Of clerks appointed at outside
postGttces who. are transferred through
the Washington pOstOhice into the post
Office department
VIII Be Held Responsible.
Referring to the responsibility Of sub
ordlnates in official matters, the post
master general said that the subordi-
liate officials would be held responsible
Tor their own acts and should not obey
an order that was not according tOlIaw:
mat an unlawful order was no order at
an 50 Iar as the Necessity of a sub
. ordinate executing lit was concerned
Payne Is Mistaken.
Ex-Cashier Tdlloch was in Washing
ton today and, in an interview. said -
notice Mr. P;1yne observes that could
know nothing more about the postal
service in Porto Rico than about the
postal service in Chicago. Perhaps Mr..
/ fayne is not aware that as cashier Of
the Washington City postofice no post
MASTERY there could even secure a box
Of matches that / did not pay for.
Money for the salaries of the post
masters, clerks, carriers. route men and
oJher employees for every Office in the
island passed through my hands. and
the postmaster of Washington City was
responsible on his bond for the proper
disbursement of il.
Not only was I the cashier for ev-
cry postofice in Porto Rico, but I was
also auditor Of the accounts. which 1
had to watch carefully, lest some en-
ploye might double up on me. L was
required to look out that there were
no double payments either for services
or materials; that not more than one
| building IN one town or city was rent
ed for a pOstofiice, and scores of other
things Often these vouchers were not
In satisfactory shape and had to be
returned. not once. but twice or thrice.
and corrected.
On Constant Lookout.
I acted likewise in a third capacity
ID keeping accounts of the supplies sent
to every pOstoffice in Porto Rico. A
postmaster, for instance. whose bond
was $500, might be furnished $500
worth of stamps and other postal ma
teflals IN going to the island. This sum
of money was turned over and over
again. He would send me cash, which
he had realized on these materials. or
voucher for expenditures, as the case
might be, and I had to send him still
further supplies, always watching out
that the amount entrusted to his care
did not exceed the amount of his bond.
If ] did not know more about Porto
Rlcan postal affairs than about postal
affairs in Chicago" declared Mr.. Tul-
loch, Il was not fit to be cashier. That's
all there is to it..
Damaging Statement. 81
Touching the question of expenses for
individuals which auditing officers re-
fused TO pass, Mr.. TullOch SAID.
Il know that in some cases where
these men came in Win EXPENSES which
the accounting Offieers of the treasury
MOulu not pass a very ingenious
SChelle was revised to help them out.
-Ioy uiiIettl5n of First Assistant POST
mayer General Heath the names of
,Lnese employees would be ordered kept
on the payrOlls for time, long enough
to make sufficient money in salary to
equal the tabOOed accounts. I know in
one case a favOrite had come back to
Washington and his name had been
dropped from the rolls. He had been
drawing pay at the rate Of 1,2O0 a year,
but it was found that some of his ex--
penses would not pass the auditing Of
fees. Forthwith an order came to me
to put him on the rolls at 81, 400. He
performed no additional work, but was
paid a salary till the deficiency was
made up"