ABSTRACT
The difficulty of the outsider in judging as to the truth or correctness of the Balance Sheet put forward by the directors of particular company must, it is to be feared, always remain while the principle of maintaining Secret Reserves is sanctioned by the Courts and the general sense of the business community. But the difficulty to which Mr. Carter draws attention is not so much that of the outsider as of the auditor, who has a statutory right of access to all books and documents tending to throw any light upon the matter, and the right to interrogate directors and other officers of the company in respect of their dealings with regard to its affairs. That such guiding principles actually exist can hardly be doubted by those who honestly believe that there is any real future for the accountancy profession.
