The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1907-12-11
LOST BIG SUMS.
DIspensary Run on Loose Methods
Irregularities Being Common
so EXPERTS REPORTS.


Account.-Farnum Beer Estab-
lishement Financed by the State,
Which Lost by Unauthorized Ac-
tions.-State Will Lose Heavily.
In its report filed with the State
dispensary commission the American
Audit Company charge chaotic con-
ditions of Bookkeeping, gross neglect
ofduty, misapplication of large funds
and loose methods of conducting the
Institution. Startling disclosures are
made and the report asserts that the
State lost many thousands of dollars.
The company says that with oppor-
Unity of examining missing books dis
closures dwarfng those just made
would result. 1t submits a bill for SS,-
900 for it's services.
Many irregularities and criminali-
ties are charged in the report. which
consists of $50 typewriter pages.
For one year alone arbitrary entries
aggregrate 100000 and one book
over $4,000. Illustrating the loose
methods the report says:
UNAUTHORIZED ENTRIES.
I'm order to illustrate more fully
the extent to which unauthorized en-
tries were carried, we refer in de-
tail to two entries in journal l, folios
123 and 124, for $5, 900 each. under
date of September 80, 1906, made
for the purpose of transferring
$4,000 from the account of the Car
DINA Glass Company to the account
Of the Richland Distilling Company.
Itappears that on April II, 1904, the
sum of $4,000 was paid over to the
Palmetto National Bank of Colum-
bia for credit of the Carolina Glass
Company and that on May IL, 1905,
an additianal sum of 5000 was paid
to the bank cited, for like purpose:
These amounts were enormously paid
BY the Palmetto National Bank to the
Richland Distilling Company.
The cash items referred to above
were charged on the dispensary
books tc the Carolina Glass Comp
any's account and the wrong appli-
cation of the $4,000 was presumab-
" discovered by the auditor of the
Carolina Glass Company during the
fall Of 1906. A refund from the Rich
lmd Distilling Company being unob-
tainable, the entries mentioned above
were passed on the dispensary books
without the authority, so far as we
are able to ascertain, of the proper
officials.
1.-The characteristic inattention an
notated above shows that the physl-
cal condition of the accounts was an
unknown quantity to the party or
parties responsible for their keeping,
irresponsible times elapsing before
discovery and adjustment took
place."
Many of the original invoices are
not on file. The minute book Of the
board for 1905 has been misplaced"
In a test of the cash receipts of Com
missioner Crum and Tatum, says the
report, misapplication is clearly es-
tablished. Many items appear to
have been Intentionally omitted from
the books and the company's repre-
sentative asserts that losses reach in
to tens of thousands.
AS TO FARNUM'S ACCOUNTS.
The pages of the report are devot-
ed to the account of the Consumers
Beer Bottling Establishment and the
transactions of j. S. Fdrnum with
the State dispensary. 'The account
is badly mixed up." says the report
''and it seems that agreements be-
tween this establishment and the
board of directors as to the amount
Of royalty to be paid the State on the
beer sold were changed at Intervals
without any records of such charges
being made:
"A critical observation of the man.
aoement of transactions carried on
with this company in successive stag
es dispels the idea that a fair profit
ever accured to the State out of
the sales and repurchases of beer.
Beer supplied bv this company to
dispensers and hotels for account of
the dispensary was billed to the lat
ter institution at prices apparently
agreed upon. although at intervals
additional invoices were rendered 10
the dispensary, rccharging State
profits on original purchases resOld
to the State as herein indicated.
That the dispensary officials acquies-
ced to a refund of State profits is
shown bv the credits given for the
additional invoices. No trace of the
authority room which this acquies-
enee emanated could be found.
FINANCED BY THE STATE.
"The dispensary having abandon
ed these profits or royalties placed
the Consumers Beer Bottling Es-
tahlishment in p 's';ion to realize
a profit on beer OBJ b,ained a. first cost
from and financed by tkc South Car
olina State dispenssrv.
mo agree uent or contract be-
tween the State board Of directors
and this company could be located.
and it was therefore Impossible to
verify the correctness of the prices
and terms from which sales and pur-
chases originated.
"A thorough investi CATION of this
account with the means at hand leav-
es no doubt in our minds that this
company and it's predecessor failed