✨ County Auditor's Report and Balance Sheet
The only other items that I shall allude to in the Expenditure are "Charitable Aid" and "Travelling Expenses of Officials." With regard to the former, I beg to state that I have observed that some persons have been receiving charitable aid from the County Chairman and the Benevolent Society, and would suggest, in future, that the amount voted for charitable aid be handed over to the Benevolent Society, who have better means of judging what persons are most entitled to assistance, whereas, I find that persons who, through their own actions have brought trouble on themselves, have been receiving assistance from the County, instead of persons in real want through misfortune.
With regard to travelling expenses, I find that very large sums have been paid under this heading, which I think could be obviated by more care being shown in the matter. I also notice that several sums have been paid and no sub-vouchers produced by the officer receiving the amount to prove that the expenses have been incurred. From enquiries I learn that sub-vouchers were produced in most cases, but that the late County Treasurer informed the persons holding the same that they were not required, and, as such a length of time has since elapsed, it is impossible to obtain duplicates, some of the persons also having left the district. It will, therefore, be almost an impossibility to render these accounts as complete as they should be as public documents; as, however, you have authorised the whole of them, and answered my queries as far as you could possibly do—it is only a waste of time and labor to take any further trouble about them. As I said before, the payments have been made and no discrepancies could be discovered in the vouchers as they were laid before me, it was only by comparing the Bank pass-book with the payments that defalcations could be discovered, and the inability of the late County Treasurer to make out a balance sheet.
I also beg to bring under your notice that, as there are a great number of departments under the County Government, and also, that large sums have been paid for public property, furniture, instruments, &c., &c., that the head of each department should furnish a return quarterly or half-yearly showing the amount of public property he had in his possession at the end of each half-year; also, what state it was in, what was serviceable and what was unserviceable, and what had been expended on service or lost during the time it had been in use.
I also wish to bring under your notice the very valuable assistance I have received from Mr Etheridge, Clerk in the Treasury, who has worked with me early and late to render the accounts complete.
I have the honor to be, sir,
Your obedient servant,
EDWARD PATTEN,
County Auditor.
BALANCE SHEET—1st November to 31st December, 1868.
| Dr. | £ | s. | d. | Cr. | £ | s. | d. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Balance from 31st October, 1868—Paymaster’s Acct. | 3700 | 0 | 0 | Total withdrawals, as per annexed statement | 24,391 | 9 | 4 |
| Lodgments at Bank, as per annexed statement | ... | 5751 | 4 | 0 | Amount feloniously drawn by late Treasurer | 2000 | 0 |
| 20917 | 0 | 0 | Do. petty cash do. do. | 15 | 2 | 6 | |
| £26,668 | 4 | 0 | Do. do. do. do. | 20 | 0 | 0 | |
| Balance | 2085 | 2 | 6 | ||||
| 241 | 12 | 2 | |||||
| £26,668 | 4 | 0 |
Balance... | ... | 241 | 12 | 2
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Westland Provincial Gazette 1869, No 23
✨ LLM interpretation of page content
💰 County Auditor's Report on Expenditure and Accounts
💰 Finance & RevenueCharitable Aid, Travelling Expenses, Public Property, County Council
- Edward Patten, County Auditor
- Mr Etheridge, Clerk in the Treasury
- EDWARD PATTEN, County Auditor
💰 Balance Sheet for 1st November to 31st December, 1868
💰 Finance & RevenueFinancial Statement, Balance Sheet, County Council