Omaha daily bee., 1908-02-08
AUDIT SYSTEM ORDERED OUT
Contract of Public Printer with
Accounting Firm Cancelled.
GOLD BRICK, SAYS MR.. Lands
Charge Made that Printing Costs
Government Three Times as Much
as IL Could BE Done by
Private Contract.

WASHINGTON, Feb. 7.-Concurring in the
recommendation of Acting Public Printer
Rossiter the president yesterday can
celled the contract of the government with
the Audit System and ordered its election
from the government printing office at the
end of six days. The Audit System is the
corporate name of the cost ascertainng
method installed more than a year ago by
Public Printer Stillings. Under its oper-
alton the government has paid 1t about
$4,000 for calculating the cost of govern
ment printing and binding. Representative
Lands of Indiana, chairman of the joint
committee which is investigating. the gov
eminent printing office, says that the audit
system, it has been installed and oper-
ated in Washington, is a gold brick thinly
plated with the genuine stuff. We have
paid for this brick" said Mr.. Lands, land
before we throw it out we are going to eX-
tract and retain the modicum of value it is
gilded with / mean that you can't run
the government printing office with all it's
departments and its 4.5O0 employees, with
out using some method of cost ascertain
ment So IL there are any good features in
the audit system we are going to keep
them, for we have paid for them many
times over"
Mr.. Lands is authority for the statement
that the joint investigation committee pro-
poses to take the lid entirely off and delve
to the bottom of the many charges, some
OF them definite and distinct, others of a
public rumor character, which eventuated
yesterday In the suspension by the presi-
dent of Public Printer stillings and his sue
cession by w. S. Rossiter of the census
bureau.
ROssiter Begins Work,
Mr. Rosslter has been directed by the
president to make an impartial survey OF
conditions there and to recommend methods
for reducing the office to business basis
This task an extremely arduous and COM
plex one. he plunged into today and his
judgment tonight was that in about three
weeks he viii be enabled 10 submit an IN
telligent report to the White House. This
afternoon he made a brief preliminary re-
port, commencing the discontinuance of the
audit system
Mr.. Rossiter tonight made the following
statement:
for the place temporarily vacated by Mr..
Stillngs are unfounded. While i remain
IN the government service l AM prepared
10 do whatever / am told to do. The pres
ident directed me 10 assume temporary
charge of the government printing ofiiee
for the purpo e of making certain IN
auiries The census bureau gave me leave
az absence When / have finished the
special work laid out for me ] fully OK
pect to return to my regular duties. ANY
assertion that am shaping my plans IN
the hope of becoming public printer IS
without an atom OF truth.
Charges of ExsravARance.
Among the charges which the joint in
vestigatlon committee will inquire into
pursuant TO the suspension of Public
Printer Stillings is that his administra-
ton has compassed remarkable extrava-
gances. Chairman Lands. who visited
the government printing office today to
call on Mr.. Rossiter found himself ushered
into surroundings which multimiliionaire
might fancy, In the public printers
offices are massive furniture costly pic
lures, appointments of elegance little In
keeping with printing and binding plant.
The committee, with the help of Mr..
Rossiter. will endeavor TO find out why,