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Show I DAWES DEMANDS POSTAL REFORM 'Says Bureaucrats Throttle Whole New Method of Accounting CHICAGO. Dec 22 General Charles G Uawca, former director of Iho national hudRPt, today made public pub-lic what he termed thr "submerged" balance ihoet of the postofflce department depart-ment It showed b d--licit of $16,198.-000 $16,198.-000 for the first ten months' operation of tho postal service this year. The Chicago Tribune prlntl what It said wna a reproduction of tho balance bal-ance sheet, accompanied by a l tter from J. C Knapp. vice president of the Otis Elevator company, who a-slSted a-slSted In maklnp out the report. Inabilities of the postofflce department, depart-ment, according to thn reproduced report, re-port, were $140.S46.590 for the first three months Of the year and assets were $124,648,590. "I hnve endeavored to produce a true picture of the postofflre opTi-tions opTi-tions by taking the regular postofflce accounts alone (which alone do not fflve the true picture) and addinp to tbeni what they lack," Mr. Knapp's reproduced letter read "I believe that each government department de-partment can b- .vueccsfully placed i on this basis. When ncconipllfhed, a consolidation of them will pnxluc,- B balance sheet ami operating statement of tho Unitt-d states, it concluded. DAWES sjtrki:i UP CHICAGO. Dec 22 (By tho Associated Asso-ciated Press) Uureaucrats aro attempting at-tempting to throttle a "great reform" in tho submerging of tin: balance sheet worked out for the postofflce department depart-ment by F. C Furlow of New York, president of the Otis Elevator company, com-pany, a year ago, in the opinion of General Charles G. Dawea, director of the budget The general expressed his opinion of tho "disgraceful and ar- Iehalc system of government accounting" account-ing" Thursday in conimi niing on the fact that he had heard nothing of tho postofflce balance sheet which he said had been approved by Will Hays, former for-mer postmaster general, since last I June. AWAJTTXG REPLY The matter could not be dismissed as a "great fuss about nothing," the general declared in referring to a quoted remark attributed to Postmaster Postmast-er General Hubert Work in special dispatcher published here The Chicago Association of Credit Men, which adopted resolutions asking ask-ing tho comptroller general of the treasury department undr whose, supervision sup-ervision the postoffice accounting is now carried on, to publish the Furlow balance sheet is awaiting a reply from Comptroller General McCarl. The latter lat-ter and Postmaster General Work were absolved from blame by General Dawes, who declared subordln-i'' I were responsible for "Chucking into the waste paper basket" the work of Furlow and his assistants. SECRET A HIES IX) ST "I learned as director of the budget not to be surprised at the ignorance of some cabinet officers as to the routine business of their tremendous organiza-ions, organiza-ions, which are actually run by subordinates, sub-ordinates, who have had years of training." Mr. Dawes said. "Even where they possess business ability as distinguished from professional ability, the inexperienced cabinet officer is generally lost in the enormous business busi-ness of the department. As a matter of fact, however, the submerging of the postofflce department balance and operating sheets is not the fault of the postoffice d- pertinent. They were completed by Mr Furlow Mr Knapp and their assistants about the lime that the accounting of the postoffice department was transferred b law into the office of the comptroller of the United States, who has the gre-.it task of reforming the present disgraceful dis-graceful and archaic system of government gov-ernment accounting. Comptroller Gen-oral Gen-oral McCarl is able and constructive but he Is surrounded by old government govern-ment accountants who will fight to death, if possible, improved methods. DIFFICULT TASK "I do not want tu criticize the comptroller comp-troller general. lie has a difficult task to overcome opposition, partly rising from timidity on the part of his subordinates sub-ordinates to a change In the present disgraceful method in government accounting. ac-counting. But I undertake to say that unless the fight for correct bookko p-ing p-ing In the postoffice is won. that with It goes for an indefinite time the chance of securing the proper system in the government as a whole." no |