that the office was authorized and' established.
During the 16 years wheh the lerritory func
tioned without an auditor, all that was required
to authorize withdrawal of funds from the
treasury, or, indeed,' to create deficit, was ap
proval of the head of the department1 for Which
the money was wanted. In consequence; the re
cords show instances of expenditures of funds for
which there was no authorization in law.
When the auditor’s office was established, his
duties were defined. Under them, he coul£ not
issue warrants unless they were for expenditures
that were authorized by la\s arid that were sup
■ r ■■ ; • 11
ported by proper vouchers.
The exercise of his powers ran -/counter to the
loose methods of the old system. To illustrate in
one instance, the auditor’s, office was compelled
under the law to refuse to issue a warrant re
quested by the office of the commissioner of
education. The commissioner had not attached
to his voucher, which requested that the treas
urer of the territory transmit funds to the treas
urer of the school board, the supporting figures
or a copy of the school board treasurer’s bond,
notwithstanding the law creating the auditor’s
office made these requirements obligatory.
That the auditor was right in this instance is
evidenced by Senate Bill No. 76 in the recent
legislature, providing that the bond of the
treasurer of a school board and a duplicate of
the budget of a school board shall be filed with
the auditor.
Of course, refusal of the auditor to issue a
warrant never constituted final disposition of
the rejected claim. Claimants could proceed in
courts of law. But to afford speedier adjudica
tion of a disputed claim than can be obtained
in court, the last legislature created a board of
examiners, consisting of the governor, the treas
urer and the attorney general, to pass upon any
claim disallowed by the auditor, and the board
is given power to instruct the auditor as to his
action in the premises. Even this enactment,
however, does not release the auditor from
responsibility on his bond.
The auditor is bonded for $25,000 for the faith
ful discharge of his duties. Under the criminal
law, he is liable to a maximum fine of $10,000
or maximum imprisonment of two years, or
both, for false or fraudulent acts in connection
with his official conduct.
His duties are clearly defined by statute. They
are plain. Against the treasury, whose only re
source is taxation of the people, he cannot draw
warrants unless they are supported by proper
vouchers representing expenditures authorized by:
law.
Personally, he cannot afford to incur the1
liability of mistakes or errors. Quite rightly, the
public would neither tolerate nor condone them.
-x
SALMON PRICES
Last November king salmon prices were up to
27 cents per pound. This spring they dropped to
12-7-4 and now they are 10-6-3 at thD dock and
8-4-2 on the grounds. The Alaska Trollers’ As
sociation at Port Alexander has ordered a strike.
We are not in sympathy at this time with the
strike order. The organization is only half bak
ed and too loose in its administration. Too many
foreign trollers are in Alaska who are not mem -
bers; too many Alaska trollers have not enjoyed
the confidences of this organization, and lastly,
it is not large enough to control the situation.
The buyers will stand pat. They have the money
and they have the markets, and after all is said
and done and the salmon are all gone bye-bye,
what will have been accomplished?
Our sympathies are all with the men who fish
for a living but that does not blind our eyes to
the exact condition of affairs. A man unpre
pared or a nation unprepared to wage .a long
siege in battle need not expect to win by scaring
the other fellow.
The leaders should first spread the organiza
tion and get complete strength and then take a
decisive step. But so long as they are weak in
membership and so many of the members are
weak in financial reserves the strike at this
tune is futile.
x
THE HALIBUT SITUATION
-X
At this writing, the first week of June, halibut
prices are at 6 and 3 cents with mo^t of the buy
ers not in the market. At Juneau there is only
one buyer.
It is an established fact that at prices less
than 10 cents the fishermen cannot even hope
to make wages. Last month we declared the sit
uation to be in the hands of the fishermen. Only
by curtailment of production can the market be
stabilized.
Some day the balibut fisherman whl waken to
the fact that after all he is only a fisherman
and that his salvation is in helping the other
branches of the industry to secure laws which
will permit the earning of a decent wage.