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ACCOUNTANTS AND NATIONAL SERVICE

Sir—l am afraid t cannot congratulate "Public Accountant" on the tono of his letter which appeared in s Dominion*. From my reading ot Commercial Accountant's" letter. I gatliered that he wished to emphasise the necessity of organisation and consec[uont'. efficiency—the very things that Public* Accountant" advocates in the last paragraph of his. , . . It is a pitv that the relative importance of public and registered accountants should bo introduced in tins discussion, but I think I am right in saving that "Public Accountant's" idea* as ta Hid ease with which he and the hun~ fireds of men in the Dominion with wiao experience" could take up the duties ot responsible accountants called "op * or military service, are based on an exaggerated opinion of the qualification's oi public accountants, or, rather, on a iuce of realisation of their limitations. The public accountant may be capaW® of dealing with intricate questions ov commercial or company law. and lie may' be accustomed to give advice which may sound well in theory but work nut badly in practice, but in each business i there are so many details, it may be ot < policy or of organisation, which canj be grasped and out satisfactorily ( after long experience in that particular business, that it would be ridiculous to* i expect even the gifted persons above-men- ' tioned to step in and "carry on with- • out any difficulty. At one time the accountant was a book-keeper, puro and simple, ne W • now beginning to take his place in thft j mercantile community; and more and? more being in' matters of. . policy, which at one time were regarded l as being quite beyond his scope. _ It is I natural, therefore, that; he is w?™ 1 " 1 ? ' tG pay more attention than he did to tno l commercial side of the business house : with which ho is connected, and in many > cases we find him ousting the _ mero l salesman when promotion is ouenng. f For this reason I mention that the ! retention of responsible accountants hi 1 the leading businere-houses of the JJ<>- ■ minion is quite as essential to the stabiii ity of business as would ho the exerop* • tion of the executive heads. Jour cor- » respondent's reference to the farmer is. ! quite beyond the point, and, in any case, ! the accountants of the Dominion nave 5 rallied to the colours in equal, if not 1 greater, proportion than the men on. the ' land, though they have not been so loud ' in clamouring to be left at_ home w , grow fat whilo others fight their battles- • 4s far as lam concerned, lam past >' the fighting stage. I took my. part in. >' that years ago, and would again, but r that the military authorities mil hav« r none of liie. You will see, therefore, e , that I am not personally interested ir ) tli6 exemption of accountants; but l feel.it my duty to follow up CominerV cial Accountant's" letter. Knowing that Mie Society of Accountants, from-a false, sense of patriotism, is doing nothing in. 1, tht- matter, and that most of the men ° concerned, while they understand the. position themselves, will not raise t.ien „ voices for fear of being misumlewtiod t by others. Thanking you in anticip.i- , tion of your courtesy in publishing tnis i ACCmJNTAST .

Permanent link to this item
Hononga pūmau ki tēnei tūemi

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/DOM19170816.2.53.8

Bibliographic details
Ngā taipitopito pukapuka

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 3164, 16 August 1917, Page 6

Word count
Tapeke kupu
548

ACCOUNTANTS AND NATIONAL SERVICE Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 3164, 16 August 1917, Page 6

ACCOUNTANTS AND NATIONAL SERVICE Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 3164, 16 August 1917, Page 6

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