The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1924-03-17
HIGHWAY FUND
AUDIT is MADE
BY STATE BODY
State Board of Auditors Re-
ceives Report From Ac-
cOuntant Named for Work
WAR SURPLUS REPORT
Cost of Handling Surplus War
Materials Given the
State Is Set Out

Handling of surplus war material.
including trucks, tractors and ma
chincry to be used in road work, cost
the state highway commission $685.
677.92 more than it has received from
leases, sales and in other ways, ac-
cording to the report filed with the
state board of auditors by o. b.
Lund, accountant named by the
board to examine the books Of the
highway commission and some other
state departments and industries.
The value received through use of
the material is not accounted for in
dollars and cents.
: The balance sheet for the equip
ment department of the highway
commission shows the assets $121,-
457.94. including government autos
motorcycles, tractors, road roller
trucks and miscellaneous war equip
ment on hand, and total liabilities of
$l55, 1885, SO, leaving the cost of oper-
ating the equipment to the state
$33, ,677.92.
The equipment department wa:
started in June, 1919. Since January
l, 1922, the department has kept gooe
| records, the auditor states, but pre-
vious to that time had not. Surplu!
! war materials have been handled b!
it.
At the outset it was not known
as the highway commission, or ap
parently by the War Department
what this branch Of the service nigh
develop into, says the Lund report
this being an entirely new venture
I with no precedents to follow. NJ
special effort toward keeping syste
| matte records of the activities o
the Equipment Department wer'
| started at the beginning; therefore
some of their operations during it
first two years have been difficult t.
| audit.
The equipment department ap
parently had not previously been au
dited or checked by anyone outsid
Of the department. l have made
complete audit from the beginning o
that branch of the highway depart
ment, an inventory was taken of al
war materials and purchased equip
ment on hand and vouchers and rec
| ords examined in detail where sam
could be found The records of thi
department prior to January /, 1872:
are very incomplete, however;
seems that in many cases sales wer
| made and the cash collected and eN
pended directly by the men in charg
without the funds passing throug
j the state treasurers office or al
pearing on the records of the, high
way commission proper in any way.
| Records Now Good
Citing what he said were "ver
lax and irregular" metho ods, Lun
added that I'm January, 1922, bool
keeper was furnished the equipmel
department. Since that time collie
tions and expenditures have passe
through. the state. treasury, and q
financial transactions reaching tf
bookkeeper are reflected quite clear
subsequent to January l, 1922. III
report continues:
War materials and supplies a.
principally assigned and sold
counties, minor political subdivision
and individuals for use in the CO
struction of highways. There are a
ticles on hand, however, that cam
be used in road construction; all
goods that are rapidly deterioratii
with age that are being sold to pl
vate individuals from the supp
-, bnp1linr IN n
transactions are for the storekeep
to collect the funds, listing them al
: sending the list with the money CO
lected to the bookkeeper periodical
, the bookkeeper in turn issuing
receipt for same.
: The meth DDS now used in han
ling the miscellaneous war suppl
and equipment are such that it is il
! possible to trace the receiving
: disposition of large part, of t
miscellaneous material and equi
ment.
"A very complete record of the a
omobilek, trucks and tractors h
been made up by the equipment {
partment. A copy Of the War
, partment ledgers showing in det
r shipments of all war materials to t
state of North Dakota was obtain
, from Washington showing ed
truck, tractor and automobile shipF
into the state of North Dakota
the War Department, and all sh
: ments have been accounted for; II
being made possible by being
r hacked bv the manufacturer ser
: number. This could not be do
: Continued on page ~