The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1881-12-09
FRACTIONAL CURRENCY.


secretary's report.
FRACTIONAL CURRENCY.
Of the fifteen millions fractional currency
stlll outstanding only about eighty thousand
has been redeemad the past year. The sugses-
| ton that the amount may properly be dropped
| from future statsmsnts of the public debt
seems worthy of approval SO also does the
suggestion OF the Secretary as to the advisable
lty of relieving the calendar of the United
| States courts in the Southern District of New
! York by the transfer to another tribunal of
the numerous stits pending there against col
lectors
THE REVENUE FROM CUSTOMS
for the past fiscal year was $l9 159 6T6.02, an
increase OF $11 1871 Gil. ~ over that OF the pre-
cediig year S38, 098 562. 80 of this amount was.
collected at the port of New York, leaving $780,
251, 49, 63 as the amount collected at ali the
other ports of the country. OF this sum SAT,
977, 1872 was collected on sugar, melado
and molasses; 1885, 62478 on WOO
and its manufactures; 81, 1852, 5343t on
| iron and steel and manufactures thereof, 49,.
OBS. $50 on manufactures of silk so, 825, 1854
| on manufactures of cotton, and So
463, 643. "a on wines and spirits, making the
| total revenue from these sources $193.058-
| 72o81 The expenses of collection Tor tic
past year were Sc, 410, 345-20, an increase over
| the preceding year of 1887, 41004. Notwith-
| standing the increase in revenue from customs
! over the preceding year, the gross value of the
| imports including free goods, decreased over
| $25, 900. 600. The marked decrease was in the
value of i1nrnanufactured WOOL Ga, 023, 682 and
in THAI of scrap and pig iron, $12 6l0,671. The
| value OF imports (sugar), Oh the other hand
showed an increase Of $7457, 4T4 OF steel rails
S4,385 52l Of barley %, l54, 204 and of steelin
| bars, ingOts, ETC., $3.50, 046.
| compared with the previous year, there was
an increase of $676, 1888, 688 in the value of ex-
| ports of merchandise, and decrease of $685.
| 800, 118 in the value of imports The annual
| average of increase of imports of mercha ndise
over exports thereof for ten years previous to
| June 80, 1873, was $104, 805, 922, but for the
! last six years there has been an excess of ex-
| ports over imports of merchandise amounting
10 ST, $50, SOS, 1903, an annual average of $780,
| 668,017 The specie value of the exports of
| domestic merchandise was 1876, 616,473 i'll
1870, and $3.50, 975,947 in 1878, an in
crease of 100000, 474, or 1876
per cent The value of imports
was 1886, $685. 408 in 1870, and S642, 664, 627 in
1881-an increase of $206, 1872 20, Or AZ per
| cent. during each year. From 1862 to
| 1879, inclusive, the exports for. specie ez-
ceeded their imports. The largest excess
| OF such exports over imports was
reached during the year 1864, when it
ending June 80, 1880, the imports OF coin and
bullion exceeded the exports by $75, 1891, 391
| and during the last fiscal year the excess of
imports over exports was 1871, 1853, $50.
| In the last annual report of the Secretary of
| the Treasury the attention of Congress was
| called to the fact that $469, 651 $50 in per
oentum'bonds and $685. 573, 753 in per centum
| bonds would become redeemable during the
| year and Congress was asked to authorize the
REFUNDING
of these bonds at a lower rate of interest. The
| biA for such refundng having failed to
| become law, the Secretary of the Treasury
| in April last notified the holders of THO
| 1896, 800, 400 6-per-centum bonds then cut,
standing that the bonds would be paid at
| par on the LIST day of July following, or
that they might be continued" at the pleas
ure Of the Government to bear interest at
the rate of 81 peroentum per annum. I'm
der this notice $178, C55, $50 of the
| 6-per-centum bonds were continued at
the lower rate, and $l7635,250 were re-
| deemed. In the month OF May like notice
was given respecting the redemption or con-
tinuance of the $439, 81, $50 of 5-per-centum
bonds then outstanding, and Of these
| $40l. 404 900 were continued at 81 per
| eentum per annum, and $38,336, 456 re-
doomed. The 6-per-oentum bonds of the
loan of Feb. g. 1861, and of the Oregon
war debt, amounting together to $14, 125,S90,
| having matured during the year, the Secretary
| OF the Treasury gave notice of his intention to
redeem the same, and such as have been pre-
| scented has been paid from the surplus revenue
| TDere have also been redeemed at par SIG. 49,
| 100 Of the 80 per centum continued bonds
| making to al of bonds redeemed, or which
have ceased to bear interest.
THE REDUCTION OF THE ANNUAL INTEREST
on the public debt through these transactions
| is as follows BY reduction Of interest to 81
| per cent $1,047, 1896, 227, by redemption Of
bonds $685., 234, 900 total, 81, $50, 629, 225 The
| 81 per centUm bonds being payable at the
| pleasure OF the Government are available for
| the investment of surplus eevenue without the
| payment of premiums.
| Unless these bonds can be funded at a much
| lower rate of interest than they now bear, |
| agree with the Secretary of the Treasury that
no legislation respecting them is desirable. 1t
| is a matter for congratuatiOn that the bust
| ness Of the country has been SO prosperous
| during tae past year as to yield by taxation
| large surplus of income to the Government
| If the avenue laws remain unchanged, this
] surplus must year by year increase on &C.
| count Of the reduction of the public
| debt and its burden of interest, and because
| of the rapid increase Of our population. III
| 1860 inst prior to the institution of our inter
nal-reveuue system, our population but slightly
| exceeded 10000 coo. By the census of 1880 i
| is now found to exceed 50,000,0G0. 1t is esti-
mated that even II the annual receipts and ex-
| pendiureS should continue as at present the
| entire debt could be paid in ten years. In
| view, however. of the heavy loAd OF taxation
| which our people have borne, we may well con-
slider whether it il not the part Of wisdom to
reduce the revenue, even if we delay little
| the payment of the debt.
| 1t seems to me that the time has arrived
| when the people may justly demand some re-
| lief from their present enormous burden and
| that by due economy in the various branches
| of the public service this may readily be at
| forded. 7 therefore concur with the Secretary
| in recommending
| THE ABOLITION OF ALL INTERNAL REVENUE
TAXES,
/ except those upon tobacco in its various
FORMS and upon distilled spirits and fer
mented liquors, and except also the special
| tax upon the nU;actuers Of and dealers
| in such articles. The intention of the latter
! tax is desirable as affordlng the officers of
| the Government proper supervision of these
[ articles for the prevention OF fraud. l agree
| with the Secretary of the Treasury that the law
i imposing q stamp tax on matches, proprietary
/ articles, playing cards. checks and drafts may,
! with propriety, be repealed, and the law also
| by which banks and bankers are assessed upon
! their capital and deposits. There seems to be
| q general sentiment III favor of this course. In
| the present condition of our revenues the
| tax upon the deposits is especially unjust. 1t
was never imposed in this country until it was
| demanded by the necessities of war; was never
exacted, believe, in any other country, even
! in its greatest eXigences. Bankers are re-
| CURED to secure their circulation by pledging
| with the Treasurer of the United States
/ bonds of the general Government. The in
! teTest upon these bonds, which at the
/ time when the tax WAS imposed was
6 per cent, is now in most in
| stances 81 per eea4, and besides, the entire
! circulation was originally limited by Jaw, and
| no increase was allowable. When the existing
! banks had practically monopoly of the bust
meas there was force IN tas suggestion that for
| the franchise to the favored grantees the Gov
ernment might very properly exact tax on
/ circulation, but for years the system has
been free and the amount of circula-
/ ton regulated by the public demand
/ The retention of this tax has been sugges. ed
as a means of reimbursing the Government for
the expense of printing and furnishing the
| circulating notes. If the tax should be re-
pealed 1t would certainly be proper to require
/ the national banks to pay the amount OF such
! expense to the Comptroller of the Currency.
1t is perhaps doubtful whether the immedi-
/ ate reduction of the rate of
t TAXATION UPON LIQUORS AND TOBACCO
/ Is advisable. in view of the drain upon the
7 treasury which must attend the payment of ar
/ Tears of pensions. A comparison, however. of
! the amount of taxes collected under the vsry-
ing rates of taxation which have at different
/ times prevailed suggests the intimation that
some reduction may soon be made without dim
| mutton of the revenue