This somewhat briefly in outline gives you the course to be pursued in order to acquire the qualifications with which to meet successfully the examiners under our "Certified Public Accountant" Statute.

It will naturally occur to those who have looked into the matter, what of the requirement of the law about the high school graduation being a preliminary requirement? It does require this preliminary starting point, but it also says "or an equivalent education," and this to an earnest man should not be an insurmountable difficulty. I know of one case in particular where a young man has studied to acquire this standing while working in an accountant's office, who is now about to go up for the regular C. P. A. examination.

I will avail myself of this occasion to recall the criticisms that are now and then passed on by those whose ambition is out of proportion to their application and determination. It sometimes happens that aspirants upon reading the examination papers throw up their hands and fearfully depart with murmurings and discontent. This to the educator is not an uncommon occurrence, but to the layman it appears on its face as if the Examining Board had prepared tasks that were beyond the average reach; this you may be assured is not so; in fact, the general policy of the Examiners is to give credit to the candidate rather more for his intent, as shown by his execution, than for the accuracy of his responses to the problems. It is well known that some of these problems could not be worked out even by an old practitioner within the allotted time, and that such responses as reach the examiners are considered as a general credit for the effort to understand and grasp the meaning of the problems. It is fully appreciated that, in a developing community, it is not always desirable to allow the form and accuracy of technical questions to stand in the way of an aspirant, who may develop exceedingly well in the field of actual practice.

You may accept the assurance that there is nothing severe or beyond the average to be met in these examination papers, nor above the general requirements of a practicing public accountant.

If those that are interested sufficiently in this question would look into the character and quality of the examinations in this profession in other states; the Civil Service examination of the Federal Government; those of the Chartered and Incorporated

Accountants in Great Britain; the Home Civil Service and the India Civil Service, in the same country, they will find that the path of our student is, relatively thereto, "strewn with roses."

Finally let me say that if you should not find that the path that leads to the goal of your ambition is so strewn, but rather the contrary, do not lose heart; if you are plucked, try again! You must win, with the help of what Rev. Robt. Collyer calls "clear grit." There is always room "at the top" and "in the front rank," and further bear in mind the obvious and encouraging comparison that there are less than one thousand practicing public accountants in the United States, that there are more than four times that number in Great Britain, and that the prospects and commercial growth of this country in the next fifty years will create such a demand for the skilled accountant and business counselor that there is no limit that can be placed upon the number that will be needed.

Uniform Municipal Accounting.

BY STEPHEN A. ULMAN, C. P. A.

One peruses in vain the minutes of the conferences held in Washington, D. C., in November, 1903, and in February, 1906, under the auspices of the United States Bureau of the Census, on Uniform Municipal Accounting, for the hoped for uniform plan. Such a definite workable plan, for example, as the Street Railway Accounting Officers adopted in 1898 was expected, but the conferences seem to have devoted more time to discussion than to accomplishment, and the larger part of the discussion was by representatives of New York City.

Out of 175 cities in the United States having a population of 25,000 or more, the first group contains fourteen cities, and of the fourteen (New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, St. Louis, Boston, Baltimore, Cleveland, Buffalo, San Francisco, Pittsburg, Cincinnati, Milwaukee, Detroit and New Orleans) New York City has a population equal to 32% of the whole, while its expenditures for a single year are greater than the combined expenditures of the other thirteen cities, thus making it stand in a class alone; yet the representatives of all the other cities had to listen to the political, fiduciary, legal, and accounting reasons why New York City's accounts should not be on the revenue and expense basis and to views regarding the municipal balance sheet held by one of its representatives.

However, besides the benefit of the discussion some results were achieved. The forms for reporting prepared by the Census Bureau were approved. The revenue and expense accounting plan was approved, as against cash receipts and disbursements. A standard form of report for municipal industries and public service corporations was agreed upon.

Without being unappreciative of the immense good done the cause of uniformity by the results accomplished, it is to be

regretted, for the sake of the thousands of small cities who constitute the greater part of the total whose transactions are similar and comparable, and present no accounting difficulty, that a simple accounting plan, on the revenue and expense basis, was not adopted.

One of the main difficulties in municipal accounts, the appropriation account, did not receive sufficient consideration at these conferences. Money borrowed for public improvements on bonds is as a rule expended for the stated purpose. If it is not, there is no great difficulty in finding it out. But revenue from taxation, licenses, interest, fines, permits, etc. is appropriated to the credit of the various departments or funds and when disbursed is charged against those departments or funds. Thus the account closes out and nothing remains to tell what the money went for. To illustrate; here is the account "Street Department." It is credited Jan. 1, 1906, with "Appropriation $100,000." It is charged on various dates during 1906 with "Cash." The total debits amount to $100,000, and the account is closed. What did the $100,000 cash go for? One must get out the vouchers to find out. If the vouchers are sufficiently itemized, it will be found that so much went for supplies, so much for tools, and so much for machinery, etc. More often they will read "Labor and material as per contract, $2,000." How much for labor, and how much for material, and what material? In this case you must get out the contract. Nowhere will the total expenditures for labor, material, supplies, tools and machinery appear.

One of the vouchers is for a $3,000 road roller, another is for three pairs of horses at $500 a pair. But there is no account on the City's books to show that the City owns a road roller, or horses. The Commissioner may loan these to a brother contractor who keeps them so long he thinks they are his own. The new Commissioner will not know. His predecessor on retirement turns certain property over to him. That's all he knows about it. There may be some subordinate records in the department to tell, but the chances are that where the financial books are poorly kept, so will the minor records be.

Thus the appropriation account by affording a grave-like resting place for cash disbursements constitutes a serious evil in public life. It has hidden more official irregularities in the past than any other device known-except perhaps burning the books.

Eliminate the appropriation

How shall we get rid of it? accounts from the general ledger. Let all revenues be credited to accounts showing the sources from which they came, and all expenditures be charged to proper asset or expense accounts. By providing suitable columns in journals, cash books, and voucher records, posting to the appropriation or fund ledgers may be made independently of the posting to the general ledger.

In many of our cities there is no general ledger, strictly speaking. What passes for one is really an appropriation ledger. Eliminating the appropriation accounts from it will leave little but "Cash" and "Sinking Fund," "Taxes" and "Bonds." The entire revenue group, the expense group, and permanent property and equipment accounts must be supplied.

At the February, 1906, conference, Dr. F. A. Cleveland, of the National Municipal League Committee, in his paper on "The Glossary of Terms," submitted tentatively for discussion and criticism a "General Classification of Municipal Expenses and Income, Assets and Liabilities," which brings us a step nearer the uniform accounting plan.

The classification follows:

TABLE I-General classification of municipal expenses and income.