Sessional_Paper_1893 — Page 560

[viii]

cautions taken to control all receipts by the department; " and if they relied so much on the Audit as they say they did, it was doubly their duty to see that the necessary books and accounts were furnished in due time to the Audit Office.

29. The defalcations, as we have reported, began in Mr. WODEHOUSE's time, and anounted in the years 1886 to 1889 to $29,480, and would have been detected by some vigilance on his part; yet in justice to him it must be observed that he only carried out the system which had been in force for some years, and he did not appreciate then the value or necessity of the books being balanced.

30. Mr. MITCHELL-INNES, who took over the duties of Treasurer on the 1st Jan- uary, 1891, was to devote the whole of his time to the working of this Office. It was his duty to close the account of 1890, to ascertain the amount of arrears outstanding, and to cause the Rent Roll of 1890 to be balanced as soon as possible, especially when his attention was called to it by the Local Auditor. He states that on Mr. NICOLLE speaking to him about balancing the book he spoke to ALVES and was met by the plea of press of work, and he expected it to be brought up to date gradually.

31. The defalcations of 1891 and 1892 would have been avoided if the balancing of this Rent Roll of 1890 had been taken in hand in proper time.

32. We are of opinion that Mr. NICOLLE should have required the Treasurer in writing to complete the book at once, and failing compliance with this request, to have reported the matter to the Governor.

33. In our opinion the balancing of this book is not such a laborious work as it is represented to be, much of it could and should have been done during the course of the

year.

34. The evidence of Mr. BRUCE SHEPHERD disposes of ALVES' excuse that he could not close the account because he was waiting for a certain book from the Land Office.

85. During the years 1888, 1889 and 1890 the Treasurer was always an officer who had other duties to perform, and the working and supervision of the Office would naturally be left more to the chief clerk than if the head of the Treasury had had no other duties to perform. We cannot therefore acquit Mr. CARVALHO of blame. We think that some supervision on his part would have revealed to him the fact that ALVES was daily receiving money. In fact he says in his evidence that he might sometimes have handed a cheque to ALVES and that ALVES might have received cheques; and it is hardly possible that Mr. CARVALHO could be ignorant of the fact that ALVES was in the habit of receiving money. Having been chief clerk so long and acquainted with the work of that Office, he was in a position to appreciate the importance of balancing the books; he should therefore have himself caused the books to be balanced, and in default of this being done, he should have brought the fact to the notice of Mr. LISTER and his successors, and pointed out to them the importance of the books being closed.

36. The then Auditor General is to blame for allowing such a long delay between the end of the year and his examination of the books, thus:-

The Rent Roll of 1882 was balanced on

91

1883

11

وو

71

1884

#!

91

25

1885

17

"

""

1886

1887

11

"?

7/10/84

.12/11/84

.19/12/85

..... 7/11/86 .29/ 8/88 9/ 5/89

The Rent Rolls for 1888 and 1889 have never been balanced.