Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-12-03
vindicated by the events of the administra.
THE TREASURY FIGuREs

The Secretary Of the Treasurv's report pre-
sents the usual statement of actual and esti-
mated receipts and expenditures of the Gov
ernment for the past, the current and the
next fiscal year. As intimated in vester-
days DISPATCH the favorable exhibit of a
surplus of SIS, 600 for the next fiscal
year is reached by excluding from the ex-
penditures the sinking fund expenditure
and the announced deficiency of S33, 600, 900
In the pensions Appropriation for the cur
rent year; and the cash resources of the
Treasury appear to be swelled by includ-
ing among them the national bank redemp-
tion fund, every dollar of which is deposited
to meet demand liability. While these de-
partures from the former methods of ac-
counting may be legal, it is certain that
their results do not give the public an ac-
curate idea of either the present or pros
pective condition of the Treasury.
After devoting considerable space to the
discussion of the bond purchases, their rela-
tion to the money market, the tariff and Gus
toms regulation laws and the internal reve-
nue., the Secretary gives some figures on the
subject of circulation. Opposed to the idea
that there has been decrease in the none
tary circulation of the country during late
years, the Secretary presents the fact that
there has been net increase in all kinds of
circulation during the past twenty years of
S727, 100, 709; during the past ten years of
S476, ,039, 024. For the past five years no
comparison is made, but the figures are
given which suffice for a comparison and
show the increase to be about $3.50, 600, 900.
The increase is largest in the items of gold
and silver certificates, while the decrease is
wholly in the national bank circulation.
This certainly seems to dispef the idea that
there has been decrease in the circulating
medium, although it still leaves open the
question whether the increase has kept pace
with the expansion of business demands dur
ing the past decade.
The Secretary next proceeds to discuss the
silver question. He points out rle differ
ence between the silver legislation recon-
mended in his last report and that which
was adopted by Congress. He thinks, how
ever, that the silver act is an improvement
over the old one, and that while it is too
soon to judge of its permanent results, sit
has been the means of providing healthy
and much-needed addition to the circulating
medium of the United States" This ap-
pears to indicate that the preceding demon
stration by the Secretary of the large in
crease of circulation is not to be taken as
expressing his conviction that the previous
increase was all that the country needed.
The rest OF tine report is taken up with
matters of rather stereotyped character,
the statistics of imports and exports being
the most important feature which is, of
course, summarized from the more detailed
reports of the Bureau of Statistics. The re-
port shows the Treasury to be in good con-
dition. Its resources are ample 10 meet all
possible demands upon it. and it will still
remain as the most stable and solvent public
treasury in the world. But it may be
questioned whether some of the methods
that have been changed by the present ad
ministration would not have more clearly
informed the public of the fact that the
present scale of expenditures and receipts
brings the income and outgo of the Govern
ment more nearly to balance than for many
years in the past.