The Sun.
London, England, 1863-12-23 00:00:00

FINANCE AND TAXATION.

The proper officers of the Treasury have deemed
themselves required by the law of the United States
upon the subject, to demand a tax upon the incomes
of foreign consuls in this country. While such a
demand may not, in strictness, be in derogation of
public law, or perhaps of any existing treaty be-
tween the United States and a foreign country, the
expediency of so far modifying the act as to exempt
from tax the income of such consuls as are not
citizens of the United States derived from the
emoluments of their office, or from property not
situated in the United States, is submitted to your
serious consideration. I make this suggestion upon
the ground that a comity which ought to be reci-
procated exempts our consuls in all other countries
from taxation to the extent thus indicated. The
United States, I think, ought not to be exception-
ally illiberal to international trade and commerce.
The operations of the Treasury during the last
year have been successfully conducted. The
enactment by Congress of a National I3nking law
has proved a valuable support of the public credit,
and the general legislation in relation to Loans has
fully answered the expectations of its favourers.
Some amendments may be required to perfect exist-
ing laws, but no change in their principles or
general scope is believed to be needed.
Since these measures have been in operation all
demands on the Treasury, including the pay of the
army and navy, have been promptly met and fully
satisfied. No considerable body of troops it is be-
lieved were ever more amply provided and more
liberally and punctually paid, and it may be added
that by no people were the burdens incidental to a
great war more cheerfully borne.
Teie receipts during the year from all sources, in-
cluding loans and the b :lance in the Treasury at
the commencement, were 901,125,674 dole. 86c., and
the aggregate disbursements 89.3,796,630 dole. 65e.,
leaving a balance on the Ist of July, 1863, of
5,329,044 dole. 21c.

Of the receipts, there were received from customs
69,059,642 dots. 40c.; from internal revenue,
37,640,787 dole. 95c. ; from direct tax, 1,485,103
dots. 61c.; from lands, 167,617 dots. 17c. ; from
miscellaneous sources, 3,046,615 dots. 35c., and
from loans, 776,682,361 dols. 57c., making the
aggregate 901,125,674 dole. 86c. Of the disburse-
ments, there were for the civil service, 23,253,922
dols. 08c.; for pensions, and Indians, 4,216,526
dols. 59c. ; for interest on public debt, 24,729,846
dots. 51c. ; for the War Department, 599,298,600
dots. 83c. ; for the Navy Department, 63,211,105
dots. 27c.; for payment of funded and temporary
debt, 181,086,635 dots. 07c., making the aggregate
895,796,630 dots. 65e., and leaving the balance of
5,329,044 dots. 21c.

But the payments of the funded and temporary
debt having been made from moneys borrowed
during the year, must be regarded as merely nomi-
nal payments, and the moneys borrowed to make
them as merely nominal receipts, and their amount
181,086,635 dole. 07c. should therefore be deducted
both from receipts and disbursements.
This being done there remains as actual receipts
720,039,039 doll. 79c., and the actual disbursements
are 714,709,995 dole. 58e., leaving the balance as
already stated.
The actual receipts and disbursements for the first
quarter, and the estimated receipts and disburse-
ments for the remaining three quarters of the cur-
rent fiscal year, 1861, will be shown in detail by the
report of the Secretary of the Treasury, to which I
invite your attention.
It is sufficient to say here that it is not believed
that actual results will exhibit a state of the finances
less favourable to the country than the estimates
heretofore submitted, while it is confidently ex-
pected that at the close of the year both disburse-
ments and debt will be found very considerably
less than has been anticipated.