The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1926-01-28
HANDLING TEN MILLION
DOLLARS DAILY IN THE U. S.
1t Costs That Amount a Day to
Run Our Government and the
Writer of this Article Handles
The Money.
By Frank White, Treasurer of the
United States.

United States.
The Treasurer of the United States
is charged with the receipt and dis
bursement of the governments pub
lie moneys. The income of the gov
eminent from its various sources is
deposited in the Treasury and in gov
eminent repositories to the credit of
the United States. The Treasurer is
the redemption agent for national
bank notes, federal reserve bank
notes, and federal reserve notes; is
trustee for bonds held to secure ma
tional bank circulation and public de-
posits in national banks, and bonds
held to secure postal savings in
banks; is custodian of miscellaneous
trust funds; is fiscal agent for inter
est on the public debt and for paying
the land-purchase bonds of the
Philippine Islands, principal and in
terest; is treasurer of the board of
trustees of the Postal Savings Sys-
leiii, anu ID eA-OlliClO COMMISSIONER VI
the sinking fund of the District of
Columbia.
The work of the Treasurer's office
naturally divides itself into six divi-
sions for the handling of its various
operations, which may be described
as follows:
The Division of General Accounts
maintains the Government General
Treasury ledger accounts of the gen.
eral fund; the various trust funds;
the reserve fund; the gold settlement
fund; the accounts of the classified
assets and liabilities of the govern
ment; the issue and redemption ac-
counts of the paper currency OF the
government; t he in d iv d
ledger, and individual transit ac-
counts of the paper currency OF the
government; the individual ledger,
and individual transit accounts Of
Treasury offices, federal reserve
banks and branches, national banks,
and foreign depositaries. 1t keeps the
accounts of the payment and reissu-
ance of all government obligations.
1t prepares and issues the daily
Treasurer's statement of the United
States Treasury, the monthly prelimi-
nary statement of the public debt, and
the statement of the classified eX-
penditures of the government. 1t pub
fishes the monthly statement of the
outstanding paper currency OF the
government. 1t furnishes various
statistical reports from Treasury ac-
counts relative to the condition of the
finances of the government and main
tains the accounts upon which 1t
complies the figures for such state
ments and reports.
The Accounting Division handles
| the checks drawn by disbursing Of
ficers on the Treasury to pay the
various government obligations. Each
department of the government gets
an appropriation from Congress, de-
signates one or more disbursing Of
ficers for that department, and
authorizes credit on our books to
such disbursing officers; such credit
being charged against its approprla-
ton. The Treasurer's Office gives the
account a number and furnishes the
disbursing officers with the uniform
government checks. The checks
drawn by disbursing officers come to
the Accounting Division for final set
Element. Each check must be care
fully examined for amount, signature
and Endorsement. The checks are
| finally charged to the disbursing Of
ficers account at the end of the
month. A monthly statement of each
disbursing officers account is rend-
cred. During the last fiscal year end
| ing June 80, 1925, the number of
| checks paid aggregate 1857 900, or
| over 100000 checks each working
| day. The figures of this division
show that we paid out during the last
fiscal year for the general expenses
of the government, and interest on
| the public debt, on an average OF
| S1O,000000 day for each working
day of the year. This is what it costs
to run our government. About ten
per cent of these checks are paid in
cash through our Cash Division.
About ninety per cent come to US
through the federal reserve banks
and are charged to our accounts with
said banks.
The Cash Division of the Treasur-
er's office makes payment on all
Treasury warrants, disbursing Of
| ficers checks, interest checks and in
terest coupons that may be presented
| in the Treasurer's Office. This divis-
| ion is in charge of the cashier. He
makes collection of all drafts and
checks made payable to the Treasur-
| err of the United States for credit in
the various accounts. He prepares
estimates for paper for the United
States currency and directs the print