Show r Welling fuelling V Brands Audit Charges False In a fiery statement branding var vari arI ou our charges in the recent audit of ot h his accounts as infamous slander glaring injustice criminal libel and wicked falsehood knowin knowingly ly uttered Secretary Secre Seer tary of ot State Milton H. H Welling Friday demanded a showdown The statement was in the form o oa ot of ota ofa a letter let s sent nt to State A Auditor Julius C C. Andersen on Mon Monday ay b but t not made mad public until late Thursday after An dersen demanded Governor Henry H H. Blood take immediate action on a are request re- re r quest for a special appropriation t tomake to tomake make an audit of ot Wellings Welling's entire administration dating back to 1927 The statement follows in full You handed to me mc per personally a an audit of my records from January 1 to June 26 at noon on Wednesday ay January 24 some time after the report report re reo port had been given to the press Late that night I gave the papers paper papera a brief statement dealing with th the report I was not able to get In personal persona contact with you again until early l' l earl Friday morning at which time at m my earnest telephone request you met i imy in I my office one of the persons condemned condemned con n by the audit and received receive from him an explanation which your you our oura a auditors had known for months which explanation cleared up one o othe of the ugly implications of your audit audi You left me at 9 a a. a m m. Friday vit with the statement that in your opinion a grave rave injustice had been done am and that you would send your dep ity Alvin Keddington to me at once fc for fora a further conference Mr ton did not report to me at all o on en Friday although I 1 made three e dis distinct efforts by phone and personal persona messages to your jour our office ollice to see him I renewed this effort personally b by phone call to Mr Keddington himself Saturday morning and he declined t tsee to see me except in your our presence Frank Talk Cited It was finaU finally arranged that we w v should meet after the close of th the theoffice office on Saturday afternoon There Ther was some frank talk at this meeting entirely general in its character charac I 1 thought hought I 1 showed both of you ou gentle gentle- men enough of error and gro gross injustice injustice in in- justice ustice to justify you OU in recalling this report from your assistants for reexamination reexamination reexamination re- re examination and further study Imade I 1 made that request and you greed agreed courteously to consider it In th the meanwhile an evening paper condemns condemns condemns con con con- editorially my bland statement statement state state- ment of Thursday morning and demands demands demands de de- mands a further explanation Bland Blanc l may be a proper adjective to qualify my statement but it does not adequately adequately ade ade- describe my feelings or orm my efforts ef- ef cJ forts Corts to reach you ou and get hold of ot this infamous slander So much for the chronology up to Sunday Sunda- morning as I write this lei let let- ter cr After Arter reflecting upon the matter I have lave about concluded that some detailed detailed detailed de de- tailed comment on your our audit s should not longer be delayed Page 17 Lists of Auto Sales I 1 quote I It was discovered during the course of the examination that a semimonthly sem semi semi- monthly remittance of wa was made to the secretary of states state's o of- of fice ice by Mr Carl L. L Snow secretary of the Utah Auto Dealers' Dealers lion for furnishing lists of all aU new and used automobile sales in the state slat of Utah Utah- Our investigation discloses disclose that the amount remitted by M Mr Snow was the result of an agreement entered into by him and the secretary secretary secretary secre secre- tary of state whereby the secretary o of state was to assign an o othe of the d department to the specific duty o of preparing these lists in addition t ther to her other regular duties with the he department department de said remittance was to b bused be used as a salary payment to said cm em em- with a corresponding reduction in salary paid to said of it a an mount Amount less than the salary author by the board of examiners an and paid by the state of Utah We have hav examined the payroll authorization o othe of 01 the responsible for preparing prepare Ing these lists during the period o othis of this examination report and find that tho said received the maximum amount authorized by the board o of examiners We have also interviewed interviewee said who states that she a ano atno at atno no time received an extra fee in an any amount for performing this work Said further states that this assigned work was regarded by uy herand he her herand and other office as part o otheir of their routine duty There is no rec rec- record record record ord whereby this fee was deposited with the state treasurer for credit credi of the motor vehicle salaries appropriation appropriation of the secreta secretary of states state's office Neither is there any evidence showing that this money was regarded regard regard- ed as a fee of the department by reason reason reason rea rea- son of the fact that no receipt has been issued reported to department I fee ce book or remitted to state treasurer treasure as such department fee We also interviewed interviewed in in- in Mr Carl L. L Snow who presented presented presented pre pre- his canceled checks covering these payments Same were examined examined exam exam- ined by us and found same to be indorsed indorsed indorsed in in- by M Silt H H. Welling tar tar- of State Statement No 5 shows th the analysis of these transactions The facts are misstated and th the ugly Implication that I 1 misappropriated this money is a wicked false false- hood Your subordinates knew it when it was uttered The facts ar are these I Explanation George A A. A Seaman came into my office as chief chic deputy deput at a salary o of per month His salary was reduced reduced re re- at once to A little later late it was reduced again to Still Stil later his efficient daughter resigned on an account of a rule never revoked that two hyo people from one family should not be employed in the sam same office I told Mr Seaman then that tha I wanted him to receive the pay fo for tor this extra work It has hes been small smal reward for overtime and the extra effort ei ef- ef for tort fort he has given to the state H He has worked on holidays holida's Sundays long hours daily phone calls at home ne necessitating night trips to the office I r did n not t even tell my secretary o or any my living man about this arrange ment It was yours for the asking You preferred to charge me mc without consultation consultation with stealing the money Page 9 9 I 1 quote It will be observed that one I J W. W subscribed his initials initials to a majority of the receipts L issued for branch ranch transfers Our Inquiry of the secretary of states state's office discloses that hat J J. J W W. is as Jack Welling Welling Wel- Wel ling ing our further analysis of the payroll payroll pay pay- roll roU expenditures for the departments administered under the direction o of the he secretary of state fails to disclose Jack Welling ng as an of ot the tate state of Utah This is by all nIl odds the ugliest and meanest thing in your our report It II touches ouches tou hes me more deeply than life it itself it- it self elf elfIn In dealing with transfer receipts you OU mention b by initial at least east seventeen people who might be suspected of taking transfer fees Three of these only including John WellIng Veiling wrote receipts from branch offices It is not indicated by your report that any receipt issued by John Welling Veiling did not properly reach the cashier with the cash t. attached It is clearly learly stated that thirteen others wrote receipts for cash cosh which receipts receipts re re- and cash did not reach the cashier ashier In spite of this among all these icse persons shoddily shielded by the ic cloak of a letter for a name John felling is the only one you OU were disposed to identify by name with the ic further observation that John Welling Veiling is not an of record of f the state of Utah The facts are these During our rush ush period as man many as 2800 regis rations with receipts of cone come to our vaults each day Eight Tan fold operators work continuously continuous- continuous ly y to han handle le this volume of business Inevitably the applications from branches pile up in our vault in boxes like bushel baskets Two of our ur most moot trusted were responsible responsible re- re for checking those applications applications ons with the remittances attached Extra help was needed and both said aid they icy would rather have John help them than anyone myone else Moreover John ohn wanted t to do it The pa pay meant leant nothing It was was nothing The work vork was chiefly done at et night To shield this boy and ond others from temptation temptation temp- temp tation I personally went through those lose applications and removed every b bill ill ll and check for transfer fees lees with my mv own hands That mon money y is to this this his day in the vault ready for inspection inspection tion ion and has been from that ds day to this lis The only money reaching those three irce people checking branch business busi busi- ness ess at all was what inadvertently got ot by bv me in checks mone money orders or r ca cosh h and there Is not the slightest slight slight- est st evidence e that this was not all accounted for lor Criminal Libel So much for the unpaid services of f my son cover covering ng all aU told less than han one half month for which he Is as a thief with wilh the connivance connivance ance of his own father This dastardly das das- ardly accusation is nade b by your our assistants as as- without giving either my son or r m myself an opportunity for lor one word vord of conference or explanation Such mean tactics is not auditing It Itis Its itis is s criminal libeL It may be fairly demanded of ol me why the ca cash h so removed was not deposited promptly That I shall di discuss dis dis- cuss with ith the he auditors s The reason Is ls sufficient I have waited waited wait walt ed patiently for lor this audit to give that reason I I have ask asked cd Mr Seaman caman to analyze ana ana- for me the receipts written b by thirteen counter workers where her it Is claimed the cash or receipt did not reach the cashier I h have ve talked the matter over with him and know his answer which is presented as a sup I I to this sta statement ement His explanation ex cx I 1 believe to be true The pH pity is that your deputies should impugn impugn im the integrity of these defenseless defense less les men and women without ever asking an explanation from honest Informed workers about itI itI it lL I think this covers covers all charges which openly intimate dishonesty 1 I assert again my confidence in the Integrity In of these men and women I turn now with better temper to other phases of your report Schedules B 1 B B 2 2 B 3 B 4 and B B 5 5 pages 22 to 41 Is an exhaustive and pra praiseworthy recheck of claimed errors in registrations yielding showing a net loss of ot page 4 including passenger cars trucks t buses tf tJ J trailers 1 R J jl motorcycles These errors were known to exist and were under constant recheck and surveillance On the volume of money handled the loss amounts to one fourth of 1 per cent The total errors claimed of page 4 in registrations reveals a percentage of errors of ot one ono half of 1 per cent This record was described by the auditors as these numerous errors I 1 confidently as assert assert assert as- as sert that l if this part of the audit was audited their own findings would show a higher percentage of mistakes Page 14 Interest on daily bank balances This interest item Hem is approved but bul if it I 1 had been consulted I should have pointed out to the auditors that there Is still an interest item overlooked by them of ot nearly earned chiefly chiefly chief chic ly by the motor vehicle and gas tax funds which is now included erroneously erroneously er er- in corporation fees Page 14 Corporation Department Depart Depart- ment In Wrong Wron Fund Here again the auditors after checking and approving this account would have been advised advised if if opportunity opportunity opportunity had been afforded that afforded that the money referred to in the last paragraph paragraph para para- graph was now In the wrong fund Last paragraph page 15 paragraph paragraph para para- graph 6 We are condemned for lack of ot diligence in collecting bad checks especially the practice of issuIng issuing issuing ing plates plate a second year to a man with witha a dishonored check for the year before still uncollected I personally recall only one such transaction in registrations during the audit period After the transfer of these amounts to the tax commission whose accounting methods methods methods meth meth- are elsewhere highly praised by you I 1 repossessed the plates only to have the tax commission come to me later and recommend that we give the man back his plates on his promise to pay for them later This was done The man never did pa pay in full and I think his plates were again repos repos- The incident Is trivial but it shows that mortals even auditors are human They condemn me who repossessed repossessed re re- re- re possessed his plates just as they rec rec- They praise the tax commission commission com com- mission who gave him back his plates contrary to their recommendation dation A glaring injustice is done a list of citizens pages 43 and 44 claimIng claim claiming ing ng they have issued dishonored checks some o of them still unpaid I Ilave have lave had no possible chance of final conference with the auditors on this item tern but I could have told them that many checks issued to us the day before be- be before fore ore banks closed were promptly paid in n full tull What will be gained by parading parading parading pa pa- rading the names of these men as issuing issuing is suing worthless checks without explanation ex ex- Your auditors complain about the policy of employing college students in n broken shifts as some of ot them not on the payroll of or orthe the state stale The test of this service is isn in n the result achieved Robley Evans has been on our payroll for tor three years as watch- watch man nan Including himself four lour men have largely paid for lor their college collage ge education by this service By this plan lan for the salary of one watchman two wo alert active young men properly properly properly prop prop- erly armed are in constant charge of the he building at ot night Here again my son who first interested me in these hese capable young men is involved by y disappointed or discharged janitors jani jani- tors ors because he has spent much Id- Id sure ure time studying with these watchmen watch watch- men I r have not yet been given an opportunity to explain that he does noes not participate in their pay After much anxiety and hundreds of night visits to the capitol I think I sense ense its proper care as well or better than your deputies The plan will not be bech ch changed ged because of your audit audIL Errors Charred Charged Since the audit was completed I 1 Iam Iam am advised unofficially that deputies have impounded cr certain in of my records from the tax fax office for lor safekeeping If It that is true the records rec records are less safe today than ever be be- fore Are AIe the gentlemen chiefly responsible responsible responsible re re- to you for my audit and now for the custody of my records under bond at all I 1 make no charge that they would ouId misuse this record but I resent the Imputation that I or former bonded of my office now In the thet t tax |