Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-03-11
Auditor Thinks Superintend-
ent's Figures Too Low.
HAS MADE A COMPUTATION
Figures Are Placed in Hands of
District Commissioners.
WOOD STANDS BY ESTIMATE
Declares He Has Reduced System of
Cost-Keeping Down to
Fine Point

Claiming that Supt Woods figures on
the cost of handcleaning the citys streets
are erroneous. Auditor Tweedale has
given Commissioner Johnston set of fig
ures which arrive at the conclusion that
il cost the District between 20 and 81
cents thousand square yards for white
wing" work. instead of IS 6S-1o0 cents.
as reported in Supt. Woods last annual
statement.
These figures have been on Commits
sioner Johnstons desk for several days
Commissioner Johnston said this morning
that the auditors report was in his hands
but inasmuch as the board of Commits
sioners had taken no action upon the
matter he was not at liberty to say any
thing about it.
Commissioner Rudolph said that he
knew of the figures. that the difference
was such that it was advisable to go
slow before arriving at a conclusion, and
as far as he knew the difference between
the auditors figures and Supt. Woods $
figures might be accounted for by the
fact that perhaps street intersections were
swept twice or accounted for twice.
Limit of Cost Fixed.
The Importance of this difference in fig
ures lies partly in the fact that the law
distinctly states that white wing work.
or hand cleaning of the streets. shall cost
less than 10 cents thousand yards, or
otherwise the work shall be advertised, so
that contractors shall have chance to
do it.
Auditor Tweedale has been working on
the figures which he sent to Commissioner
Johnston for several weeks. 1t is under
stood that all the many elements of cost
included in the entire street sweeping
operations have been worked in and out
of his figures in several different methods.
but that the result of is 63-1O0 cents
thousand square yards has been imposs-
BILE to obtain.
Supt. Wood says his own figures are
correct and points to the sentence in his
deayOred to run the books of his Office so
carefully that there shall not be the
slightest chance of error However, he
said this morning that the method of ac-
counting could further be improved by
the instruction of a system of keeping
more nearly accurate tally of some of the
labors of the white wing men. He has
already started this Improvement, which,
he says, he will show in detail just how
much time the white wings spend on
repairing brooms. how much time they
spend in sprinkling work, how much time
they epend in stable work and how much
time lneS SpenQ III actual ndHu sweeping
work, and so on throughout the various
duties of the squad.
Down to a Fine Point.
IF there is a report of the auditor to
the effect that my figures are Incorrect"
said Supt. Wood today, Il have seen
nothing of it, ! would like to see 1t,
though, because 1 have worked this ac-
counting system down to a fine point.
There is always room for a difference
of opinion in computation, where the
work overlaps in the manner that this
street cleaning work does.
Perhaps the auditor has added sal
aries and charges that do not come strict
ly under the head of white wing or
hand cleaning work. | have heard that
there was disposition to add in the cost
of the stables. but l do not believe that
is strictly hand cleaning work as applied
to streets. Congress appropriated so
much for salaries. so much for snow and
ice work and SO on. Now. If you add in
the money that IL cost us to clean the
streets of snow it might make a diff
ference in the figures. but l do not be-
lieve that is strictly hand cleaning work.
as there was a special appropriation for
it,