IS BULLETIN 225, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



fore debited with the balance as shown by the cash book when the 

 account is being started, is debited with the total receipts at the end 

 of the month, and is credited with the total disbursements. The 

 balance of the account will therefore agree with the balance as shown 

 by the cash book at the end of the month. 



Bills receivable. — The debit balance on this account represents the 

 face value of the notes received from others. 



Bills payable. — The credit balance on this account represents the 

 total of notes due to others. 



Accounts receivable. — As explained in "Memorandum Records" 

 (p. 2), no accounts receivable are carried on the ledger with the 

 parties to whom the shipments of fruit are made. The car envelopes, 

 like other financial records of the business, should be guarded care- 

 fully against loss by theft or fire and should be placed in the vault or 

 safe at night, at least until returns for the shipments have been made 

 to the growers, after which time they can be filed in document files. 



It sometimes happens that a number of cars of fruit will be stored 

 with a wholesaler, to be sold as needed by the trade at prevailing 

 market prices. Payments for sales made in this manner are usually 

 made on the basis of the lots of fruit sold instead of individual cars, 

 in which case it might be found advisable to open an account on the 

 ledger in the name of the wholesaler and to charge up the invoices 

 covering the shipments. This is done by journal entry, debiting the 

 customer's account and crediting the Fruit account. The part pay- 

 ments are then credited to the customer's account as they are 

 received. 



In the smaller exchanges growers' supplies are sold in but limited 

 quantities, and usually on a basis of thirty days' credit. Ledger 

 accounts, therefore, need be kept only with the growers purchasing 

 supplies on credit. 



Information as to credits to a particular grower for fruit sold for 

 him can be taken from the account sales filed in the folder under his 

 name, as described under the heading "The Account Sales," page 14. 

 The copies of the account sales also show the number of the check sent 

 to the grower in case it is desired to trace the payment further. As a 

 rule, there will be but few instances where it will be found necessary 

 to deduct a debit balance appearing on a grower's account from the 

 account sales to be rendered to him. Should this be necessary, a 

 journal entry is passed, charging fruit and crediting the grower's 

 account for the amount, which is then subtracted from the account 

 sales and a check written for the balance. 



Accounts •payable. — Individual accounts should be kept with cred- 

 itors, the credit balance appearing on the account measuring the 

 amount due each creditor. 



