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11 Subsidiary Book

In a big concern, recording of all transactions in one journal and posting them into
various ledger accounts will be very difficult and involve a lot of clerical work. It
will not only be inconvenient but also causes delay in collecting the information
required. Journal is difficult for large business organizations and increased volume of
transactions because of the following limitations:

i. Periodical details of some important business transactions cannot be known,
from the journal easily, e.g., monthly sales, monthly purchases.
ii. Such a system does not facilitate the installation of an internal check system
since the journal can be handled by only one person.
iii. The journal becomes bulky and voluminous.
To overcome the shortcomings of journal, subsidiary book is introduced. Subsidiary
book is the sub-division of Journal. Those books of original entry in which transactions
of similar nature are recorded at one place and in chronological order. These are
known as books of prime entry or books of original entry as all the transactions are
recorded in their original form. In these books and the details of the transactions are
recorded as they take place day to day in a classified manner.

“Subsidiary books of accounts are also called books of original entry because
all the transactions are recorded originally or in the first instance in this
subsidiary book." - A. N. Agrawala

"Subsidiary records are also known as the books of original entry, as transactions
are entered there in the first instance so that they may be subsequently
transferred to their respective accounts in the ledger." -J.R. Batliboi

Thus, subsidiary books refer to the books meant for specific transactions of similar
nature. These are also known as special journals or day books. To overcome the
shortcoming of the use of the journal only as a book of original entry, the journal is
subdivided into specific journals or subsidiary books.

Office Practice and Accounting 9 153