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20. Vouchers will be issued monthly; and, as far as possible, will comprise the whole expenditure for the month; and all such vouchers, if found correct, and approved, shall be payable at the Treasury on or after the last day of the month in which the vouchers are issued.

21. All bills of particulars are to be made out in the prescribed forms (H & I), and must clearly set forth, in the case of services performed, the exact dates or periods of services, the rates, remuneration, and the name of the place where the services were rendered; and in case of articles purchased, the exact dates or periods of supply, the places of delivery, the quantities and prices of the various articles, which must be checked to see that they are in accordance with the terms of contract, or where no contract exists, that they are fair and reasonable; and should it be afterwards discovered that excessive charges have been made, the parties incurring the extra expense will be surcharged. Heads of Departments will be particular in impressing this on their subordinates. After examination the voucher must be duly certified by the Head of Department, or in his absence by some officer who has received authority for that purpose. On the appointment of any officer to certify vouchers, by the Head of any Department, notice of such appointment, with the officer’s signature, must be forwarded to the Treasurer.

GENERAL REGULATIONS.

1. The printed Estimates of Expenditure, passed by the Provincial Council in each year, are in all cases to form the basis of the system of accounts; and care is to be taken that the heads of expenditure are the same in the accounts as in the Estimates.

2. Every voucher for payment must show upon the face of it the title of the vote and sub-division, and the item to which it is chargeable, also the number of the authority under which the expenditure was incurred, and if under contract, the date and Gazette number of such contract.

3. Accounts transmitted for payment in an incomplete state, or vitiated in any essential particular by erasure, interlineation, or otherwise, will be returned to the Department from which they were received, in order that they may be completed or made out anew, as the case may require.

4. Duplicate Accounts are in no case to be certified, unless the word “Duplicate” be written in red ink across the face thereof, nor until it has been satisfactorily ascertained that the original Accounts, previously certified, have not been paid, and that they cannot be obtained. Officers certifying Duplicate Accounts are not under any circumstances to pay them out of an Advance, but to forward them to the Treasury, with a Special Report of the circumstances.

5. Each Head of Department is enjoined to afford every possible facility to persons having claims against his Department, so as to enable them to prepare their Accounts in such a manner as to secure their prompt payment; and in cases where the Claimant is ignorant of the proper forms to be observed, to prepare the requisite Accounts.

6. Every person entrusted with the Receipt or the Expenditure of Public Money will be required to keep a Cash Book, in which he will enter on the one side the Sums received, and on the other the amounts paid. He must also keep a Register of all Accounts,