Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-06-27

pOS1tS made Tor the purpose.
"CHAS. F. POWELL,
Commissioner. d. G.
dnitialeD "J w. r.
February 8. 1897. Respectfully referred
to the Engineer Department, d. G.. APP
proved. By order:
CLIFFORD HOWARD.
" Acting Secretary.
"'Copies furnished Captain Beach, Cap
tain Burr. superintendent of streets. super
intendent of roads, superintendent of lamps,
superintendent of water department, super
intendent of sewers. permit clerk
THE order in question was in terms that
follow:
Executive Office,
Commissioners of the D. of c.,
Washington, February 6. 1897.
Ordered: That for convenience in keep
Ing the accounts in the case of repairs by
the District of cuts in pavements or other
work done by the District and paid for
from private deposits. a general account be
opened, styled Deposits and assessments
fund" all material and labor for such work
to be charged against said account and
paid for by assessment against the de-
posts made for the purpose. Official copy
furnished auditor. D. c. By ORDER
wv. TINDALL, Secretary
THE history of this order, as set out in
the letters and Endorsements, which precede
it, is interesting in that 1t appears to have
been adopted more with view to tighten
ing the labors of the engineer department
than with reference to securing more eff
fectual safeguarding of disbursements from
the fund. In the light of this fact and SUBJ
sequent developments, l may not be con-
sidered as speaking too strongly when
say that In Its possibilities for evil will be
found the source and inspiration of the acts
which have shocked the moral sense Of the
community, and brought discredit upon q
municipal government which has been
noted for its freedom from scandal and cor
ruption.
THAT this scheme Of transfer or repay
ment vouchers was innocent in origin and
purpose goes without saying, since its au-
thor Is a man who commands respect for
his unquestioned honor and integrity Of
character. upon whose good name I would
not cast the slightest imputation. but in
the progress Of events. operations grew
in volume and Importance it became sub
versive of AL method in the proper audit
ing Of accounts, and finally the instrument
by which an artful schemer was enabled
to rob the District.
Under its sanction one account was
made to pay for work chargeable to q
score. more or less, Of deposits and appro-
prtations. reimbursement coming at the end
of the month through a perplexing omnibus
voucher which could not be explained save
by the examination Of numerous contribu-
tory ADULTS, and which should have been
avoided by making In the first instance
direct charge to the particular deposit or
appropriation on account Of which the
work had been done.
One Serious Defect.
Zone serious defect in this form of
voucher was the fact that 1t weakened
the force and lessened the value Of the
review of our accounts by the treasury,
In that 1t prevented the clerks in the Office
Of the auditor for the state and other
Departments from tracing the individual
repayments into the appropriations to
which they belonged and to which they
should have been credited With this in
formation these reviewers would have
caught Watson in any monthly examina-
ton of the account. but without 1t the
result Is that $23, OOO.49 went directly into
the pocket of the embezzler, and S2S, 40 OF
were misdeposited to cover a shortage in
the Traders National Bank, making a
total of $51 1861, which should have gone
into the treasury of the United States in
the form of repayments to the appropr-
alton for assessment and permit work, but
not having reached their destination, the
appropriation aforesaid is today short to
that extent.
NO one apprehended fraud in connec-
ton with these transfers, but when the
work OF repairing cuts of every character
grew TO such magnitude as to involve many
of the largest appropriations, monthly
vouchers for these multitudinous repairs
containing so many charges that they could
not be detailed and the practice having
obtained of making the vouchers to read
For work done in connection with repairs
to cuts in various streets under various
appropr1ations with an aggregate amount
instead of detailed and itemized state
ment, I realized the impra cttca btlity of
making a thorough audit under such con-
ditions, and objected to it's continuance
In this action was Joined by one of the
clerlcal examiners who pass upon our
accounts in the treasury and who unon
several well-remembered occasions during
the past four years. has visited the District
building for the express purpose of re-
curing the formulation of a better and
safer method. Inasmuch, however. as the
department In charge Of the work strenn-
ously protested against a change on the
ground that 1t would Inconvenience them
ana ana increase their labors as well. no ac-
ton was taken. Recently, however. In the
race or formidable opposition after a series
OF arguments which extended over a period
OF three days. impelled by the conviction
mat the transfer voucher system was
vicious and dangerous with Scarcely a re
deenlng feature. I finally carried nv point
ana comprised the destruction of this dead
~ upas tree. leaving neither root nor
pranch to vex or trouble US again.
The Act Of August 7, 1894.
The transfer voucher system, however,
was not the only obstacle which blocked
the way of the treasury reviewers and
prevented them from catching Watson. for
In the act of August z 1894 1t had a for
midable ally in the clause which reads an
follows:
All sums received by the collector under
the provisions of this act on account OF
assessment work, and in payment of as
sessments heretofore made for compul-
sorry permit work, shall be credited to the
appropriation for assessment and permit
work for the fiscal year in which they are
collected
Il cannot better illustrate the danger
which turks in this provision and the OPP
portunities 1t furnishes for concealing ir-
regularities from the eyes of the most
watchful examiner than by citing the fact
that the amount appropriated for assess
ment and permit work for the fiscal year
1901 was $4,000, while the repayments
amounted to s21S 129.37. making a possible
expenditure Of 1858. 1897 upon the basis of
an appropriation for $4,000.
"These repayments which flow into the
treasury daily at the rate Of thousands
annually are derived from assessments for
special improvements, and distort the
account as to render 1t impossible, with
an average equipment of clerical force to
ascertain whether the money repaid ts
from an appropriation transfer, or from
one of many hundreds Of payments received
from assessments against real estate. II
the treasury had been required to deal
only with the appropriation as made by
Congress, every transfer from the permit
fund and from other appropriations to
that for assessment and permit work would
have been regularly and systematically
checked, with the inevitable outcome that
NOT single irregula rity could hava es-