Cost Accounts for Reconnaissance Surveys. 45 



Salary Account. 



Property Account (Purchases). 



Freight Charges. 



Express, Bank and Postal Charges. 



Cost x'Vccount. 



The entries are made and the accounts posted in the following 

 manner : 



Head Office Account: — Debit the total amount of money 

 allotted by H. O. for the carrying out of the work. Credit the 

 monthly total of the Cash Account. Thus at any time the cash 

 expenditure to date is ascertainable. 



Cash Account :— Debit the cash on hand. On the credit side 

 enter each day's expenditure in detail. At the end of the month 

 balance it off and post the various items to the Dr. side of their 

 respective accounts. From this account a statement for H, O. 

 of the month's expenditures may be quickly drawn up. 



The remaining accounts are posted monthly from the Cash 

 Account. They show, assembled and in detail, the expenditure 

 on each branch, i. e. Salaries, Supplies, etc. 



Cost Account: — This account is made up at the end of the 

 operation. On the debit side enter the H. O. appropriation. On 

 the credit post the totals of the various accounts. The balance 

 will show the amount due to or by Head Office together with 

 the total expenditure on the work separated into its various 

 branches. The credit side of this Account will, of course, agree 

 with the total of the Credit column of the H. O. Account. 



The property which is acquired by transfer should be handled 

 by means of a Property Record Account in the 'back of the ledger. 

 Each item should be entered separately together with the value 

 placed upon it. 



In figuring the depreciation upon those items which are still 

 in commission at the close of the work the rate should be based 

 on the estimated life of the article in question. By this method 

 the value of any part of the equipment will have been completely 

 written off by the time it is discharged. This will apply to pack 

 ponies as well as to canoes, etc. Articles lost and broken should, 

 of course, be written off in total. 



Finally a Cost Statement is drawn up for the completed oper- 

 ation. The totals of the various accounts are entered, depreci- 



