The Portsmouth inquirer. [volume] (Portsmouth, O. [Ohio]) 1849-1855, 1854-12-15

cAgnUtens tnouetAnu LWO nunureQ and t0rtYf
nine dollars. sDurihgthe sameperiod. tie
payments made IN redemption 81 the pub.
lie deb, includeing interest and premiums,
amounted totEcnty four million three hun-
dred and thirty-six thousand three hun
dred ahd eighty dollars. TO the sun, total
Of the receipts Of that1y year is 10 be adj
ided a balance remaining in the Treasury.
atthe commencement thereof, Amounting to
twenty-one million nine hundred and for
ty-swo dollars, and atthe close Of thes same
year, md corresponding balance amount
ing to twenty million one hundred and thir-
ty-seven thousand nine hundred andthirty.
seven dollars ofreceipts above expenditur-
es, also remained in the Treasury, AL
though, in the opinion Of the Secretary of
the Treasury. the receipts Of the current fis-
cal year are not likely to equal in amount
those of last, yet they will undoubtedly
exceed the amount Of expenditures by at
least fifteen million of dollars. / shall,
therefore, continue to direct that the surplus
revenue be applied, SO far as itcan be judi
iciously and economically done, ro the re-
duction of the public debt the amount of
which, at the commencement of the last
fiscal year, was sixty y-seyen million three
.hunded, and forty thousand six hundred
and twenty eight dollars; Of which there
had been paid on the twentieth day of No
venber, 1854, the sum of twenty-five mill
lion three hundred and sixty-fve thousand
one hundred and seventy-two dollars;
leaving balance of outstanding public
debt Of only forsy-fvur million nine hun
dred and sevento-fye thousand four hun
dred fifty six dollars, redeemahle at differ
edt periods within fourteen years. There
are also remnants of other government
stocks, most ofwhich are already due, and
on which the interest, has ceased, but
which have not yet been presented for pay
ment, amounting to two hundred and thir-
ty-three thousand one hundred and seven
ty-nine dollars. The statement exhibits
the fact that the annual income of the
government far exceeds the amount of its
public debt, which latter remains unpaid,
only because the time Of payment has not
yet matured, and it can notbe discharged
at once, except at the option ofpublic cred
itors, who prefer to retain the securities of
the United States; and the other fact, not
less striking that the annual revenue from
all sources, exceeds, by many millions of
dollars, the amount needed for a prudent
and economical administration of the Gov
ernment.
The estimates presented to Congress
from the different Executive Departments,
at the last session, amounted to thirty
eight million four hundred and six thou
sand FIVE hundred and eighty-one dollars;
and the appropriations made, to the sum of
fifty-eight million one hundred and sixteen
THOUSAND nine hundred and fifty eight dol
lars. Ofthis excess of appropriations over
estimates, however, more than twenty mill
ions was applicable to extraordinary OBJ
jects, having no reference to the usal an
nual expenditures, Among these objects
was embraced ten millions to meet the
third article of the treaty between the
United States and Mexico; SO that, in fact
for objects ofordinary expenditure, the ap-
preparations were limited to considerably
less than forty million Of dollars. / there
fore, renew my recommendation for a re-
duction of the duties on imports. The re-
port Of the Secretary Of the Treasury pre-.
sents series Of tables showing the opera
tion Of the revenue system for several sue
cessive years, and as the general principle
Of reduction of duties with view of rev.
enue and not protection may now be re-
garded as the settled policy Of the country,
/ trust that little difficulty will be encount-
cred in settling to details of a measure to
that effect.
In connexion with this subject. l rec
ommend change in the laws, whichmcent
experience has shown to be essential to the
protection of the government. THERE'S no
express provision of law, requiring the re-
cords and papers ofa public character, of
the several officers Of the government, to be
left in their Offices for the use of thier sue
cessors, may provision declaring it felony
on their part to make false entries in the
books, or return false accounts. In the
absense OF such express provision by law,
the out going officers, in many instances,
have claimed and exercised the right to
take into their own possession, important
books and papers, on the ground that these
were their private property: and have
placed them beyond the reach of the gov
.erment. Conduct ofthis character, brought
in several instances to the notice of the
notice Of the present Secretary of the
Treasury, naturally awakened his suspic-
ion, and resulted in the disclosure that at
four ports, 0swego, Toledo, Sandusky,
and Milwaukee, the treasury had, by false
entries, been defrauded, within the four
years proceeding March, l843, of the sum
of one hundred and ninty eight thousand
dollars. The great difficulty with which
the detection Of those frauds has been at
tended, inconsequence Of the abstraction of
books and papers by the retiring officers,
and the facility with which simular frauds
in the public services may be perpeHated,
render the necessity of new legal enact
ments, in the respects above referred to,
quite obvious. For other material modi-
fications of the revenue laws with scenes
to be desirable, refer you to the report of
the Secutary of the Treasury That re-
port, and the tables which accompany it,
furnish ample proofs Of Che solid founda-
ton on which the financial security of the
country rests, and of the salutarv influence