Alexandria daily advertiser. [volume] (Alexandria [Va.]) 1803-1808, 1806-12-29
) 7!,REASURER's REPORT.
(Conciuded.)

The LouisiaIa stock cannot be reiMs
'basaed before the period fixed by contract;s
the gradual aopcrasloHfof the annual REIN.
bursement will exsinguish the old SIX per
cent. 10 the year 1873, aud the deferred
stock in 1924 after which year, the only
remaining lncumbrance will be the interest,"
on the three per cent. stock, which III Us
present shape. may be considered as IRE
deemable. Purchase cannot be relied on,
as the application of even an inconsideraole
sun would raise the ssocs abovcsthe prices
limited by law. II follows that all the sPe.
,cies of debt, on which the entire annual
app, OPERATION of 5000, 900 Dot dollars could
operate, will have been reimbursed prior
TO the year 1909, that the remaining dept
canpo.. without some modifcatlons. as
seated to by the public creditors, be more
rapidly or completely discharged than Is
here stated !; and that the annual payments
on that account, will, after the year 1903,
and prior TO the year 1878, be reduced 70
the interest aud annual Reimbursement, a.
mouOsiog to near 4,6oo,o 900, as will more
fully appear by the annexed table, mafs,
ed &C
Nv. The revenue derived from customs
during the year 1902, which. was year OF
European peace, was much less 10 proper
ton than that of any OF the Immediately
preceding or following years, and yet ex-
ceeded ten millions of dollars. AS It has
been ascer,aine6 that the population OF the
limited States increase at the rate OF thirty
FIVE per cen, in ten years the revenue de.
rived from customs for the yea. 1912, may
be estimated at thirteen millions five hun
dred Thousand dollars; to which, adding
oply FIVE hundred thousand dollars, forthe
annual proceeds Of the sales Of public lands,
will give fourteen millions OF dollars tor the
total revenue of that year, or tor the ave.
rage revenue Of the years 1909 1875
Aud this must be con: idered as q very mo-
deraee eompu; alton, since II does not To-
clude the revenue derived from New Or
leans; is predicssed on the superstition,
that the wealth of the United States IN.
creases ia no greater ratio than their Popn-
iation and does not exceed the sam,
which exclusively Of the Meci.srranean
fund was received last year into the sreasa-
ry.
The anuual payments on account OF the
public drbt, will, during the same period,
amount, as has been already stateG, TO
1900, 900 dollars. All the other expenses
OF the United States, whether domestic or
foreign. of civil nature. or for the support
of the existing military and naval establish
men,s, do not a, present exceed $500 600
dollars. The total annual expenditure, at.
lowing four hundred Thousand dollars a
year tor contingencies, may therefore be
estimated after the year 1903, at eight
millions aud half which deducted from
revenue of fourteen millions, willleave
nett annual surplus OF FIVE millions and
half Of dollars.
The question now recurs whether nor.
ton of tha, surplus would no, be most ad-
vantageously employed in fastening the
reduction of the debt? Whether a.ncde
may not be devised 10 provide, within a
short period, for its 6eai and complete re-
infringement. and thereby release the
public revenue from every incu,nbrauce.
This can only be efrcled by nodiacs-
| ton Of the debt assented to by the public
creditors ); and conversion Of the old
six per cent. deferred, and three per cent.
stocks, on ternss mutually bene fetal, into
| common slx per cent. stock, redeemable
| within limited time, has appeared the
| most simple and eligible. if not the ca!y
practicable plan that>can be adopted. For
Its details reference is respectfully made
TO a letter written in January last, to the
chairman Of the committee OF ways and
| means, a copy of which marked CD is an.
nexed. i. would only be necessary to
state that if such plan should be sane
toned by congress-, aud accepted by the
{ Al