4,00 
OFFICE WORK OF A GARRISON BATTERY. 
the balance is struck in the pay list in pencil it may at once be transferred 
to the balance sheet, and the final balance then struck, at first, in pencil. 
The nearer the resulting balance is to that of the previous month, the more 
probability of its being right. Often a startling discrepancy will occur, and 
a beginner had better then compare the two balance sheets (November and 
December in this case), and see if any items similar in character—credits in 
ledger, for example—differ very much in amount without a ready explanation. 
It is well to remember that a mistake of £10 is as likely to be made as one 
of a penny—-the mere amount is nothing; in fact, very often a large amount 
is omitted from it not being entered at once, its amount making one feel sure 
one will remember it. Remember also that an error of a sovereign in the 
balance sheet may mean something much larger; it may only be the balance 
resulting from two different errors. 
18. A battery that keeps up a balance sheet from month to month, or 
more properly strikes its monthly balance sheet regularly, can hardly go very 
far wrong; but it is of little use to only prepare a balance sheet occasionally. 
19. Here it is unfortunately necessary to remark that the balance thus 
struck is never carried on to another month; the whole sheet starts fresh 
each month, only retaining any items that may still remain unsettled. 
20. The rule given as to items in the cash book containing a complete 
history of themselves applies with greater force to those of the balance sheet. 
If the detail of any item is very long, and the item not soon wiped out, give 
the detail in full once, and then afterwards refer to that month thus “ Tor 
detail, see August 1876.” 
Fund Boole. 
21. There are other cash transactions—those with the various funds, 
canteen, refuse, cricket, recreation, shoemakers' and tailors' shops, and the 
necessaries funds. The stoppages for these having been charged against the 
men, and so collected by the battery, are entered in the cash book on the last 
day in the month as transferred to the various funds. Some of these funds 
may have their separate account books kept by their own treasurers, but the 
Major should always have this duplicate account, in case of the loss of the 
separate one. It is a good plan to use for /this purpose one large book to 
hold the accounts of all the funds, the top being cut for a list of the funds, 
as is done for an alphabetical index. With some of these funds it may be 
necessary to strike a monthly balance, in the same way as is done with the 
battery, the cash in hand and the stock in hand being usually the only assets, 
and any bills due the debits. The filed receipts should be in the "Major's 
possession. 
Battery Ledger . 
22. The ledger needs little explanation. At the top of each man's sheet 
should be entered a brief note to show wherefrom the account is brought; 
