'File 35/87 VI A. 38 Muscat reforms, customs, finances' [‎97r] (201/440)

2
i :
Balance l-'rougtitt forwapcl ) Hs, 124,^-38
from 1924, i
Balance on 30th June 1925. 104,772
Anticipated Balance on )
-i ^ 1 150,322
31st December 1925. )
These balances are apparent and not real. This is due to the
practice which obtained here, and which I have continued to
obserTe, of "bringing certain Major Expenditure e.g, Civil List,
Military, Administrative Staff etc» to account a month in arrear.
Thus it was that December 1924 pay under these heads was met and
accounted for not in December 1924 but in January 1925, The
balance of Bs.124438/- was in fact the book balance on 31st
December last of Receipts over Expenditure brought to account
between 1st January 1924 and 31st December 1924. This balance
must not be indentified with financial condition of the State
at the end of the year. In reality it represents State revenues
received to the end of December less State liabilities (at least
under major heads} to the end of November only. To arrive at the
actual financial position of the State at the end of last year
therefore cognisance must be taken of these'carried forward*
December charges amounting in all to Ks,69237/-
The true surplus will then be seen to have been Us*55201/- only
and not Bs,124438/-.
The same applies to the balance on 30th June 1925.
^une under the heads in question amounting to
Bs. 64523/- has not been taken into consideration as it was ms&e
on 1st July and will be brought to account in July accounts.
The true balance is therefore not Bs,104772/- but Bs,40249/- only.
The system whereby such expenditure is carried forward
from the month to which it pertains to the month following, while
not open to objection from an accounting point of view, inevitab
ly gives rise to swollen and unreal paper balances which in turn
lead to a false sense of stability and loose spending. To remedy
this it would be necessary to bring seven months expenditure to
account in the remaining six months of the year. The anticipated
ifli