Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1910-04-19

hicle department of the office of tn
secretary of state comprises the follow
ing groups of employees;
81 The office force in the Stat
House.
80. The agents in various localities IL
New Jersey and adjoining States, whit
register motor vehicles and license
drivers.
%. The eight paid inspectors who as
sist in the enforcement of the act.
THE assistant secretary of State Il
the commissioner of motor vehicles
having personal charge n supervision
of the enforcement of the provisions Of
the motor vehicle act. but, In practise
he does not appear to bear n Close
relation to the bushes Administrative
of the office.
"The act makes it the duty of The
commissioner to appoint a chief IN
spector of motor vehicles, who shall be
chief clerk of the department, and Mr.
Edward johnson was appointed CHIEF
inspector.
The net was approved 10 take eff
feet on or before July L, 1905, and al
though three and two-thirds years have
since elapsed, my observation of the
Office and my scrutiny of its methods
and records compel me to say that the
commissioner and the chief clerk have
failed TO organize the department for
the accurate, prompt and lawful trans
action of business, and have failed TO
establish efficient checks against in
competency and possible dishonesty.
I'm my examination of the records
and reports of the department and OF
its business methods. l have discoV-
cred that there were no duplicate pay
rolls on file in the department, n nc
record of absenteeism; no proper and
clear charge of supplies shipped to
agents and no lists or invoices rem
dered to agents for such shipments of
supplies; no proper care of the store
room and it's contents, any person being
at liberty to enter and help himself
without supervision; nj discipline
among the agents; no proper organiza-
ton of the office.
NJ Edward Johnson. chief inspector
and chief clerk, appears Mt the Cfice
on Tuesdays. The rest of his time Is
spent mt an Office of the department In
Jersey City. So far as my observation
goes, 1 Judge he might just as we'll also
spend his Tuesdays in Jersey City.
Commissioner Smith explained that
last spring he had transferred Johnson
to Jersey City as an experiment, as
the North Jersey inspectors were prac-
tically without supervision; they were
so far away they were not in touch
with the department, and he a try
ing the plan of keeping Johnson in
~ - -EN~- 49, ~A>-@
closely. I asked which were most i'm
portant, Johnson's duties as inspector
or as chief clerk. Mr.. Smith replied
his duties as inspector were much the
more important.
Experienced Man Needed.
The office has need of a chief clerk
of business experience and familiar with
business methods and organization, who
should be clothed with authority n
power over the office force and over
office administration and agents of the
department.
Mail for the secretary of State is
delivered in the corporation office to
Chief Clerk Transue. He sorts it, plac-
ing in a basket the mail addressed to
the motor vehicle department, which
UdShGt VI HAL yS~GtllN6lt d " II lliCboi
vehicle office by the office boy. Many of
these letters contain currency as we'll as
checks. There is no one person whose
duty 1t is to open this mail and dispose
of it. Sometimes it is opened by n
a sometimes by another, and occa-
sionally by a third. The handling of
the mail in this manner makes possible
grave errors and serious embarrass-
ment. l disapprove of Mr.. Smiths ar
rangement, or lack of arrangement, for
he disposal of the mail in d safe and
businesslike amer. No letter register
is kept by the department.
"A monthly report of registrations
made and licenses granted is made, or
supposed to be made, by each one of the
thirty-eight agents, with a remittance
of the sum received for the month. as
shown by the report, and the agents are
directed to make such reports and re-
mittances before the fifth day of the
following month.
II have checked these monthly reports
with the corresponding cash book en-
tries for a period of fifteen months, from
October 9, 1908, to January l, 1910, and
have compared the cash receipts as
SQOMH Dy lIlc Cdoh DCCh 49, 49,
moun deposited in the echan
National Bank of Trenton, and with the
paid to the treasurer.
ION October 2, 1908, the cash
balance brought forward
was . $l.474 IS
Including his balance, the
cash-bouk shows d debit Ter
ffteen months ............. 272,f11 10
The handbook shows de-
nosits for this period off,. 272,611 10
Cancelled C h e c ks
bearing the in
dorsement of the
st a e treasurer
show that during
this period he re-
ceived ........... 1854, 063 A.
On January l, 1910,
the bank balance
was .............. S,474 SO
Making receipts by
by the treasurer
and balance in
bank equal ...... $272,537 9S
For duplicate
markers, H. E.
Fine was paid. 70 rs
-S 272, 611 z;
II commenced my examination on
October 2, 1903, because both cash book
and bank book were balanced on thai
date, and were not balanced agar
during October. November or Deem