The evening times. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1906-1914, 1914-01-23

MILES DeufasluS lOr Remedy.
with the work on national bank
hand" the report says, with
week or more accumulation of UNI
cleared checks constantly on hand.
with ,~disbursing officers accounts un.
balanced and unstated for months,
with controlling accounts ignored by
reason Of h pressure of details, and
with the task Of bringing order out
Of the confusion which now exists
hopeless by tho clerks en-
gaged upon the work. it is manifest
that the efficiency of the staff is seri-
ously affected, and that the condition
calls for immediate and effective rem
On account of; the transfer to
Washington on FIseb. 1, 1913, Of ali dis
bursting oficers4 accounts (except a
teW kept In Hawaii and the Philip
ing on. It's books accounts with over
$500 disbursing officers. which ire
kept In nine ledgers and supposed to
be controlled. by summarized
in the cash room AS a matter of
fact. these controlling accounts are
such in name only, no attempt having
been made since Feb. 1 to reconcile
the total OF the balances in the de-
tailed ledgers with the controlling
accounts.
I'm fact. the detailed accounts have
at no time been in such shape that
q total Of the balances could be taken
Accounts Which Show Peril.
This statement is illustrated by the
following examples taken from n
Of the ledgers:
Account 17045, redemption agent,
united States treasurer. national bank
agency.
From February ! to August 80 the
ledger were $409, 166, 5e9.94 and the
total debts we're $3S6, Os2.636.0s. No
have been entered in this
account since It was started. The diff.
ference between the two sides is a
credit Of $23,O73,933.S5 while the bal.
ance to the credit of this account on
that day according to the "cash
room" statement was $2S,617,s 99,12
difference Of over five and one-half
millions of dollars.
Difference Of 5000, SO0.
Account 17O42.' Redemption and
account:
The balance to the credit of this
account, according to the ledger ON
August 80. was s1,256, 2ss.OS. The
balance according to the cash room"
on the same day was $l,s63, O94.35, a
dt1erence OF 1906, BOG. 20.
Account 17041. Treasury warrants:
From February 1 to August 80 $15,-
0l4,336.S6 was charged to this ac-
count. One credit for the insignificant
sum of SIS appears against this heavy
debit. In other words, on its face the
account shows IN overdraft Of SIS
O~14,321.68, while as u matter of fact
It should show a credit balance of
$3,733.8O5.31. according to the daily
cash statement Of August 80.
Cannot State Credits Exactly.
s much confusion has existed in
these accounts" the report asserts,
that overdrafts have frequently APP
peared, necessitating a REORGANIZATION
Of all the original items making up
the debts and credits and revealing
the fact that the b~ookkeepers had
been furnished with erroneous data
for posting. Counter entries innum-
cradle have been the result, some of
them for large amounts.
due to h uncertainty of the cor
RICHNESS Of the balances as shown by
the books. the Office has been unable
to state authoritativcly, in response
credit. but Of late has been replying
to such inquiries by saying. that the
amount to. the officers credit would
warrant payment III his check for
dollars. with. 10 Certainty that this
balance might NOT be wiped out the
next day through the clearance of
checks which had been in the treas
ury for a week or longer.
THESE accounts. which are similar
to the accounts of depositors i'm a
bank, should be handled with the
same efficiency and promptness and
be as effectively controlled and
proved as those of any financial in
stttutton. Until this is done there
can be no assurance of their correct
ness at any time"
Increase In Depoatorics, Handicap.
Regarding national bank accounts,
the report says that prior to June l.,
1913. the treasurer had accounts in
about 500 active d%epositary banks, but
since that date the number mas great
~ increased, until there r now about
1000 active accounts on the treas
urers books. to say nothing of half
as many more inactive" accounts.
All of these active" banks are re-
ceiving money for the governments
accounts, paying checks issued by Of
iicers of h government, and trans
ferring moneys in excess of their au-
holdings either to the treas
ury offices or to other national banks.
Because Of the magnitude and null
titude Of the transactions Of these
agents Of the government, and because
the 1deltty- of the custodianship should
be speedily determined. there is ne
cessity for prompt Notification of CIV.
cry charge against it's account.
This, We regret to say" the report
asserts, 1.-The treasury does not do, ana
under present conditions, it cannot do.
the date of this writing (Sept. %
bank accounts have been fully
only to June a."
Shows Menace OF T1fefts.
Here n report makes this sensa-
statement:
Aside from the lack of accurate
knowledge regarding the condition
and correctness of these accounts, op-
portunities exist for gross irregulari-
ties. the preparation of which would
seriously reflect upon the administra-
ton Of the office.
1T would be possible under the con.
ditions in which the accounts now are
Tor an officer or employee of an active
bank to report to the treas-
urer that said bank had transferred
as ''cxcess deposits to charge this
amount to the t%rcasurer's general ac-
count. totput the money in his pocket,
and to depart for parts unknown,
without this action being, discovered
by. the treasurer's office within two
months-fong enough for the alb
sconder to reach the uttermost parts
Of the earth.
Another illustration may serve to
emphasize VI statement. II an ac-
tive depository bank should notify it's
correspondent in New York to deposit
With the. assistant treasurer in New
York $4,000 for its credit, as a trans
fer Of excess deposits. and at the
same time advise the treasury of such
fail to make. such deposit, it
not be discovered by the ac-
counting division for over two months.
In the meantime if the correspondent
~ nla-aAAa. -Aeil