Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1876-12-07

outstanding on November /, 1s76, 1857, $685.
7l6. The amount of legal tender notes on
deposit with the Treasurer on November Isl,
for the purpose of retiring circulation, was SZO,
60 GAG. The amount of national bank notes n
circulation Nov. was So 43.io1 less mat on
June 90 1874; and that of legal tender notes was
Sl4 464 2S4 less than January ia, 1875; the to-
tai decrease of legal tender notes and national
| bank notes, under the operation OF these acts
| being Si3,6O7,74S.
| The Comptroller, considering the present year
especially appropriate for that purpose devotes a
considerable portion of his report to a review Of
| the banking systems under which circulating notes
| were issued previous to the organization Of the
national banking system, and to the presentation,
in q concise form, of the statistics of the two
| Banks of the United States and of the former
State banks OF the country, so far as they could
be obtained from official and other reliable sourc
es.
The table compiled by him from estimates of
Mr. Gallatin in 1884, give the capital, circulation,
deposits, and specie of the banks of the country,
| including the two Banks of the United States for
| the years 1911, 1915, 1916, 1920 and 1929; Also
simar information as to the state banks from
1884 to 1863, and the national banks since the or
ganizston of the system
The comptroller also presents, by geographical
| division, the capital and deposits of the State
banks, private bankers, and savings banks of the
country, which have been compiled from returns
made 10 The Commissioner Of Internal Revenue,
during the present year for purposes of taxation
These tables exhibit the growth of banking in
this country since 1911. and show the total bank
capital, at the present time to be not less than
seven hundred and twenty Millions and the total
bank deposits to be not less than nineteen hun
dred and seventy-four millions.
The amount OF additional circulation issued
from January IA, 1875, to November |, 1876, was
$40 ,615. The amount issued during the year
ending November |, 1876, was 81, 093, $50; making
| total, from JanHary IA, 1875, to November /,
1866, lone year and nine and q half months of
Sle,0SO 800 OF this amount, S7,3l3, ITO was is
sued to one hundred and twenty-five banks organ
lied during that period, with an aggregate capital
OF Sli,O3o,OOO The remaining circulation,
amounting to Sl0,767 l05, was issued to banks
| previously organized. The amount of legal ten
der notes retired under the operation of the act
| OF January II, 1875, was Sl4, 2S4. The net
decrease in the amount of the national bank notes
from June 70, 1874. to November |. 1875, was
SO 49, 6i; and the amount on deposit with the
Treasurer, for the purpose of retiring circulation
on November l, 1876, was S20,9l0, 946. The large
reduction in bank circulation may be attributed
to a desire to realize the premium upon the bonds
at their present high value in the market, the
margin between the circulation and the bond. be-
ing carried to profit account and used either in
loans or other investments.
If the market value of L. S. bonds should re-
main unchanged 1t is not probable that the amount
of additional circulation up to 1879 would exceed
SlS0O0,0 900. Ii, however, there should be u ma
terisl decline in bonds a considerable amount
would be re deposited. The proil11n circulation
depends upon Tue price palu Tor the O0nds and
| on the rate of interest. If the business of the
country should revive or the value Of bonds de-
cline the amocnt of circulation must largely in
crease. The profit on circulation is estimated at
| two and quarter per cent In localities where
| the interest is seven per cent the value is two
| and half per cent, the profit about one and
| half per cent.
CUSTOMS.
| The receipts from customs are $l4S, O0O, COO, a
| decline of S9,000,0O0 below last year. Three
| fourths of this is collected in New York. Much
| litigation arises, and the organization of court o
arbitration or revenue court is suggested to OBJ
viate them.
| In speaking Of the compensation of customs
| inspectors the report says:
| Ever since the beginning of the Government,
| until the revision of the statutes the law while
| fixing q maximum rate, has left the compens ation
| of inspectors of customs discretionary with the
| Secretary of the Treasury. In the revision the
words comforting the discretion were repealed, and
three dollars per day was made the absolute rate
of compensation, with permission to increase it to
four dollars per day in such ports as the Secretary
| might think advisable.
Considering that there are many collection dis
trcts wherefrom the fact that the vigilance of n-
spcctors is effective, but little service in the way
of collecting duties or detecting frauds is done,
| and where all the duty required by the Govern
ment is not incompatible with some other occupa.
ton, it seems desirable that the discretion given
in the earlier laws should be restored. While
| four dollars . day is not an excessive compensa-
ton for customs officers employed in the larger
ports, and giving their whole time to active Off
cial services, less than three dollars q day would
be sufficient for officers in small ports who are re-
| quired to watch against violations of the revenue
| and who might, without detriment to the service,
| have other occupations.
| In compliance with the provisions of section T.
| OF the legislative, executive, and judicial appro-
| priaton act, approved Aug. 10, 1876, Q careful
scrutiny has been made Of the force employed in
the collection of the revenue from customs, with
| view of reducing the number OF the same
Reports of special agents assigned to the duty,
received from seventy-six collection dstr lets re-
commend an aggregate reduction Of 229 employees,
| involving decrease in the
Annual expense of S242, 1897 80
| 1t is proposed to make q reduction of
ten per cent. in salaries in certain
districts, which will amount to oOOO. 900 90
There are twenty eight districts
which reports have not yet been re-
ceived. These II is estimated will
add TO the reduction about 5000 90
| Making q total reduction in an
nual expenses of collecting the
| revenue Of Si67, 1897 80
These reductions, on the LIST of January proxi.
| mo, will be made.
| COMMERCE AND NAVIGATION.
There is little change in the proportion of the
foreign carrying trade transacted in foreign yes.
sells, about seventy-two per cent of imports and
exports, during the last fiscal year, having been
carried in foreign vessels against seventy -four
per cent. for the proceeding year and seventy
two per cent. for the fiscal year 1874.
The Register of the Treasury reports the total
tonnage of vessels Of the United States to be 4 !.
279,45S tons, decrease of 574,274 tons from that
of the fiscal year ended June 30, 1875. The de-
crease is principally caused by the dropping of
caDal-boat tonnage exempt under the act Of Con-
gress approved April Is, 1874.
The actual decrease is believed to be about
5S3,6ll tons, this amount being the excess of the
losses over the gains during the last fiscal year
but this decrease is reduced to 574274 tons, by
corrections Of the balances outstanding
The following table exhibits the total tonnage
for the last two years:
1875. 1876.
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