New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1910-06-14
WASTE AND LARCENY"
IN CITY RECORD WORK
Investigating Committee Shows
Where at Least $4,000 May
Be Saved Every Year.
PRINTERS RETURN s13,500
One Exhibit Showed That Matter
for Which S29 Was Charged
Gould Have Been Set
for 20 Cents.

Forty per cent Of the money spent by the
city annually for its printing stationery
and book supplies is waste and larcenies." "
according TO the report to the Mayor of the
special commission appointed some time
ago TO investigate the management of the
City Record. The term 'larcenies' is used
by the commission to describe expense sad
died on the city by setting many things in
q style OF type in violation of the contract
for printing.
The commission. which was composed Of
John a. Hennessy, James E. Sullivan and
William J. Ellis, says that the cost OF
printing the City Record, the official pub
lication of the city. published SIX days
week, and the cost of printing the minutes
of the various boards and OF reports Of
various kinds could be cut in half It
costs now about $4,000 a year to print the
City Record. and the cost of printing the
reports is about $4,000 The commission
recommends that an editor be appointed TO
prepare the copy for the printers and that
an expert stationer and bookbinder be en-
gagged 20 assist the Supervisor OF the city
/ Record in those branches of his depart
ment.
An examination of the testimony before
the commission of Patrick j. Tracy, VINO
for six wears has been Supervisor Of the
CITY Record: of Henry Mcmillan. his dep
my. and Of George r. Valentine. manager
of Martin B. Brown & Co, the Official
rrinters of the city, shows that ''precedent
was responsible TO a large degree Tor the
renea-ed violations of contract and for the
wasteful methods employed They con-
tinued 10 do things in such way because
il had been done so for years
An Example of "Precedent"
r7,,1 precedent was carried 50 far that
it was found by the commission that an
lid brevier measure out of date for SIX
wears was used in measuring up that klhu
of conposition Both Supervisor Tracy ana
,5r Valentine expressed surprise when inc
use of this measure was brought 10 tiieil
a+,ar+i,n Checking up old city biils
showed that the city had overpald the
connanv s13.59s for BREWER composition aS
. ,es,,lt of the improper measure ne
co,or,apy has sent a check to the Cohti oi1e'
TO cover this overcharge-
In doing this the company cohtehueu lii'.
,here was an undermeasure OF hoiipa ei
and an insufficient charge for allera lioii'
which would Offset the city's ciaiih' ndI
r. commission held that such claim
.o,,Id have TO he taken up later me
port says;
Tho commission is convinced thaa ,ta Ii,Io ,rno
,lss,,rernent was due TO a slIIlpiS; an" r,1ia
I i,I.a,ationai error in the meaSui meaSt ms -, fo,.
"a H. discovered either by the accotnt TOR
H. Conrroller or by the account hr.,,ier
IN .Tt,a Gity Record" An old 10TH IN ~ in
-,,,e vas used. which was an iis 80 .
II7,e,,,-tnp type set by hand, put "0' "
[.t measure for machine type
what Could Be Saved.
Following is summary of VIVA, ai.o
-.,e.,,tseiou reported could be saved an
LII, nv proper management ot the Ci'y
Record:
; -, ,.r,nttne OF The city Record ana
AZ 49, si,f,nIefnents, II is coi7ei a. -,
-,a.e1neut TO say that the amount tia
- l.e saved once undtE pioP-i e,5n non
e,s,,,f,5ist ration OF the once Is.
T,vntrh is about % per cent "a -
.,,o,,nt now expended -,.-l,.
--aa saving in the cost OF a tte i;t.srsi
-. 5 annual reports. even Win ivei
allowance can be easily iy,Is - year Of 100 600
oi d ,. - a.. done without any loss IN the
later Of any records OF halue an,,ing
n IS simply case OF tttn5 cut.tr,5
-, eYorbitaut charges TOT ~
arg ~ .utting useless fna'teI ii"ii' 90
ri,al reports 49,. a-ep a hostile
Theie y ,bst with proper conpetiiioh
+he yearly contracts the pIlce 70 ~ ~
lot ti iI'-o,ld be 20 per cent less on tL5
eltE hsanks ard stationery aHa
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