Perth Amboy evening news., 1923-10-30
|CLA|M SYSTEM
| IS CUMBERSOME
That it Would Take Several
Weeks to Make Compre-
henSive Report
SEE NO SUPERVISION
For Check on Items Repre-
Sented by voucher-SyS-
tenn is Called "Loose"
SEE NO SUPERVISION

NEW BRUNSWICK, Oct. 30:-
Two vublic accountants examined
the various records in the freehold
ers Office yesterday afternoon. and
have submitted a complete report of
their findings to Edmund A. Hayes,
chairman of the Democratic county
committee.
The report dated Oct. 20 follows:
I'VE today made survey of cer-
tain records and vouchers pertaining
to Middlesex county disburse ments.
We find that the system is so cum
bersome that it would take several
weeks of detailed checking to enable
us to submit a comprehensive report
of the county records. Our exam
ination divulged the fact that dis
bursements are made without the
kroper supervision or check of the
Sems represented by the voucher.
Material is paid for apparently on
the say-so of truck driver or road
laborer that it has been received.
AS far as the records show the road
supervisor takes the word of such
truck driver or road laborer and he
in turn on such assurance certifies
the bill for payment to the board of
freeholders who instruct the treas
urer to make payment. This it seems
to us, Is a very loose system and cor
rected methods should be adopted
at once so as to eliminate the posi-
bility of the certification of improper
bills against the county.
I'VE find that for stone purchases,
vouchers are honored without IN
most instances, having weight slips
accompanying them. All vouchers
should have attached thereto the
details to support the vouchers. The
apparent practice is to honor stone
bills without anything further than
the verbal assurance that the ma
terial has been received. We were
informed that weight slips were
somewhere in the office but the
county treasurer does not attach
much Importance to having them
form a part of the voucher.
Expense items are not sufficiently
detailed under the present method
to allocate the various items of ex-
pense to the proper accounts. We
speak particularly of the various
items that enter into road accounts.
We find that the total amounts ex-
pended on roads as shown by the
monthly reports from January to
August, inclusive, represented $3.50,
059.45, and that of this amount, they
set up an item entitled sundry in
dividuals to which item was charged
$63,459.57. In other words more
than 25 per cent of their road ex-
penditures appear in their records
as sundries. This, in our experience,
is an unprecedented percentage 10
be set up in a sundry account and
1.-The purpose for which this money
kas spent, cannot be determined.
"The Board of Freeholders have
not filed statement of expenditures
with the State Highway Commission
since June 80, 1923, and without the
statement to date of the moneys
spent by the board on roads, 1t
would be impossible to make a COM
plete report.
ut is not advisable to proceed fur
ther with this examination until such
time as the treasurer furnishes you
with the statement required which,
he said, would be Forthcoming il two
or three days. Upon receipt of this
information we will be in a position
to proceed with our examination.
q "(Signed)
E. T. VANDERPOOL,
c. r. WILLIAMS"
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