Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-07-08
MUST REFUND THE EXTRA PAY
JOB DIVISION PRINTERS IN
DEBTED TO GOVERNMENT.
Full Effect Of the Recent Decision
by the Controller Of the
Treasury Explained.

The decision Of the controller of the
Treasury authorizing the public printer
to pay the machine operators a wage
greater than 80 cents an hour, and hold
ing that compositors in the job division
cannot be paid q wage greater than so
cents an hour, the amount fixed by law,
is. fguratively speaking. a two-edged
sword. Indeed, 1t is not improbable that
the machine operators will have to wait
until next July before they can receive
an increase in pay. Although it is known
that the public printer wants to pay the
machine men more money, and now has
the authority to do SO, the question has
arisen how can he do it under the exist
ing appropriation for public printing and
binding. No official of the government
can in any one fiscal year expend more
than his appropriations; in other words
the official is prohibited from creating a
deficiency. When Congress appropriated
for the printing office last session the ap-
preparation was based on the estimates
| submitted by former Public Printer Still
lings. which did not allow for any In
crease in the wages Of machine operators
At the printing office today it was an
nounced that the public printer had not
yet taken up the question of an increase
In the Day m0cnlno men.
Although there Is much doubt as to
just when the machine operators will get
the long-looked-for increase in their pay,
there is no doubt about the compositors
in the job division having to refund the
extra compensation they received under
their former rating as imposers.
1t was learned today that under the
controllers decision the compositors In
the Job division who received more than
90 cents an hour. the rate fixed by
law for compositors will have to refund
the extra money received since Mr.. Leech
took charge Of the Office. And this they
will do. The clerks having charge Of the
accounts of the Job division are busy now
figuring out just how much each en-
ploye of the b-division Is indebted 20 the
Office. The job compositors will. of
course, be allowed for all the time they
put In as imposers at the rate fixed for
imposers. It will be several days before
the accounts can be Strengthened out. AL
nounced that the employees in the Job divi-
sion will be allowed to pay back the
money due the office under the control
ler's decision as suits their convenience
They will not have to refund the money
in one payment
In connection with the refund of the
money by the job compositors 1t was sug-
gested this afternoon that the controllers
decision may have bearing in closing
the accounts of former Public Printer
Stillings. If 1t should be held by the
auditor for the state and other depart
ments that the disbursing officer of the
printing office had no right to pay out
the extra money to compositors because
of designation as imposer, the COM
positor not performing the work of an
imposer, it Is not improbable that the
former public printer would have to make
good the excess of money paid out in
violation Of law.
The auditor for the state and other
departments, when asked about this to-
day, declined to discuss 1t. The subject
has not yet been submitted to that Of
fetal.