The San Juan islander. [volume] (Friday Harbor, Wash.) 1898-1914, 1908-02-15
DROP AUDIT SYSTEM
lands SAYS THE GOVERNMENT
BOUGHT AND PAID FOR
GOLD BRICK.
Congressional investigating Committee
Promises to Find Out What Is the
Matter With the Government Print
ing office-charges OF Gross Extrav-
agance and Excessive Cost Of Work.

| washington, D. c., Feb. 8.-COncur.
ring in the recommendation of Acting
Public Printer Rossiter, the president
has cancelled the contract of the gov.
eminent with the Audit System and
ordered it's election from the govern
ment printing office at the end of six
days. The Audit System is the cor
porate name of the method which was
installed more than year ago by Pub
lie Printer Stillings. Under it's opera
ton the government has paid $120, 900
for the privilege of calculating the cost
of government printing and binding.
Representative Lands of Indiana,
chairman of the joint committee which
is investigating the government print
| ing office, says that the Audit System,
as it has been installed and operated
in Washington, lis gold brick thinly
plated with the genuine stuff"
I 1--WE have paid for this brick" said
Mr.. Lands, "and before we throw it
out we are going to extract and retain
the medium of value it is gilded with.
mean that you can't run the govern.
ment printing office with all its de-
partments and its $500 employees with
out using some method of cost ascer-
tainment. So if there are any good
features in the Audit System we are
going to keep them, for we have paid
for them many times over"
Investigating Charges.
Mr.. Lands is authority for the
statement that the joint investigating
committee purposes to take the lid en-
tirely OFF and delve to the bottom of
the many charges, some of them def
mite and distinct, others of public
rumor character, which eventuated in
the suspension by the president of
Public Printer Stillings and his sue
cession by w. S. Rossiter of the cen
sus bureau.
Mr.. Rossiter has been directed by
the president to make an impartial
survey of conditions there and to rec
ommend methods for reducing the Of
flee to business basis. This task, an
extremely arduous and complex one,
he has plunged into and his judgment
| is that in about three weeks he will be
able to submit an intelligent report to
the White House. He has made a
brief preliminary report recommending
continuance of the Audit System.
Had Luxurious Quarters.
Among the charges which the joint
investigation committee will inquire
into pursuant to the office of public
printer is that his administration has
been encompassed by remarkable ex-
travagances. Chairman Lands, who
visited the government printing office
to call on Mr.. Rossiter, found himself
ushered into surroundings which a
multi-millionaire might fancy. In the
public printers office were massive
urniture, costly pictures. appointments
of elegance little in keeping with a
printing and binding plant.
The committee, with the help Of Mr..
Rossiter, will endeavor to find out why,
roughly speaking, it has cost the gov
eminent $50 to turn out a job which
commercial houses would do for SIS.
The committee may inquire into such
reports as these: That As cents a
pound has been paid for quantities of
inks worth less than 20 cents a pound; ;
that the storerooms of the government
printing office contain at the present
time more paper stock than under any
other administration was used up in
half dozen years; that persons wish
ing to do business with Mr.. Stillings
had to make engagements four or five
days ahead and had to run the line
! of uniformed lackeys.
| Last Warning to Liquor Dealers.
Olympia, Feb. ga final warning
to liquor dealers subject to the state
license law who have not yet taken
out the license is contained in cir
cular issued from the office of State
Treasurer George G.. Mills. The cir