Arizona silver belt., 1904-10-13

and it seeming that omissions were existing, thorough search of all the records and accounts was entered upon, and that work has taken an inn mense amount of work and patience, and has consumed time that did not expect, and could not have foreseen, the reason being that the methods of receiving and handling the moneys were very lax, and the records were very hard to bring to a proper adjust ment. No daily balances of cash hav- ing been taken, errors and omissions could and did creep in, and got tan gle created in what ought to be sim pie, neat, concise and self-protecting account, until the task of unraveling it grew from a mole-hill to a good sized hill, but It had to be worked out.
 In accordance with your instructions to investigate the records of this of- ice during past terms, went to the beginning of the year 1900, and though a neatly written set of books are here, made by ex-Treasurer Morehead, who proves by his work that he has had a very high ability as an accountant, yet the system employed, and it's methods, taken with an apparent care lessness, produced one of the toughest nuts to crack that have found any where. No daily balances were taken. The book balances and report balances varied greatly. The tax collections were entered with view to economy of paper, it seemed; and, while each individual payment of tax is entitled to sufficient record to protect it and make the item clear and intelligible, yet in very neat handwriting, but SC fine as hard to be seen, would appear a mans name, often without initials, and with no day date, and the entry would be made far away, often, from the date of receipt stub, if the stub was dated at all, and the simple word paid" in pencil, would appear on margin of tax roll, sometimes without any date. This required great care, ingenuity and industry to connect the record and the facts. This necessi- tated checking from all sides, and fol- lowing innumerable blind trails, and patience and time were consumed to- gether. All the records were carefully checked by items, and the receipt stubs that could be found were checked very thoroughly and com pletely. Mr. Moorehead kindly came and assisted in the work for number 1 Of days. Mr. Morehead was anxious to see it Sll come out right. He made expression of his belief that it would come out so, yet when errors and omis- sions were found as the work pro- greSsed, he was surprised.
 To get proper foundation, and a balance that we could feel was correct to about the middle of 1900, full list of all taxes collected in that year was drawn off, and showing made in it, of what the sheriff had received, as we'll as those that the treasurer re ceiYed, effort was made to check the list with the cash book, but that prov ing to be too difficult, owing to the way in which the items appear in the cash book an adjustment cash book'' was prepared for checking purposes. In this book all reported receipts and disbursements were written, and to them were added the omitted items, and the differences of errors, pro and con, for errors against himself ap- peared also, such as crediting up pay ments of taxes twice, for same item, some quite large, that of one mer- chant here who paid $2jO on account of taxes of 1900, in December, and later came in and paid the difference. At the time of receipt of the $250 he entered it as such, and when the re- mainder was paid later, he entered the whole tax. Several similar things occurred, in lesser amounts.
 The receipt stubs for 1900 could not be found, and only about half of those for 1901 were found. A number of blank stubs appear, from which noth- ing can be learned, but many items of taxes appearing marked "paid'' in the handwriting of Mir. Morehead on the rolls, and not being found entered on cash book, had to be entered in the new cash book as omitted entries. Most of such items would be found for the period during which taxes were being paid, in November and Decvm- ber-the busy time.
 Owing to not having any 'blotter," record or other means of keeping run of cash receipts, except to enter from stubs, at the end of the month appa- rently, the cash record shows no bal anceS were taken, and great chances for making errors existed; therefore,