Herald and tribune. [volume] (Jonesborough, Tenn.) 1869-current, 1893-04-13
INSTRUCTIVE FIGURES
Made Public by the Bureau of Sta.
tistics,
Covering the Period of the Past Thirty
Two Years.

i
of the Bureau of Statistics has JUS
given the public table which he hal
reason to look upon with some pride
and interest, for it conveys an i'm
mense amount of valuable and inter
esting information. 1t gives the rec.
ords of populations, debt and interest
paid thereon, revenue and expendi
lures, imports of merchandise, com.
mercial ratio of silver to gold, coin
value OF paper money, per capita of
money in circulation, total amount of
money in circulation, amount of mon
ey in the Uuited States, duty collect.
ed ON imports, internal revenue
collected, amount of expectation per
capita and percentage of total agricul-
tural products to total domestic pro-
ducts exported. All of these state
ments are given for each year from
1860 to 1899 inclusive.
One of the most interesting of the
statements contained in this table re-
lates to the collection of tarff. 1t is
especially interesting just now that
we are promised tariff reform. 1t
shows that the per capita amount of
tariff collected now is $2.66 for each
individual in the country, while ten
years ago it was S4.12, and twenty
years ago 1923. High water mark
in the collection of tariff taxes was
reached in 1872 apparently, as the per
capita rate of duty collected in that
year, 1928, was higher than any other
year from 1860 to 1899. The lowest
rate was in 1851, when the per capita
of duty collected was $1.22 for each
individual is~the country. 1t gradu-
ally increased until in 1864 it was
S2.S3, in 1857 $465, in 1872 1928, in
1874 1928, and from that time until
the passage of the Mckinley bill,
which greatly reduced the amount of
revenue collected, it was not materi-
ally changed in amount. In 1890 the
per capita of tariff collected was SO. .62
for each individual, and in 1892 was
S2.66 for each individual. t
The average ad valorem rates of du-
ty on the dutiable goods have not been
changed much since 1865, when
they were 47.56 per cent. There were
only one or two years in which they
fell below 40 per cent, and. in 1892
they reached high water mark at 4S.71
per cent. In 1860 the average ad
valorem rate was 1897 per cent.
There has been a steady increase in
the amount of money in circulation in
the United States in the thirty two
years which this table covers. In 1860
the amount was 1886, ,4O7 1853. In 1865
it had reached $714,7O2, ,995. From
that time until 1870 there was slight
reduction, and from 1870 to 1880 there
was slow growth in the amount of
money in ci,cuJt ion, and in 1880
it reached $973 9S2, 1928. The follow
ing year it reached the billion dollar
line and has slowly increased, being
$1,292, ,56S, ,515 in 1885, $1,429, 251 ,27O in
1890 and $1,6O3,O73,39s in 1892. In
spite of the enormous growth in popu-
lation our growth in currency has
kept pace with it. In 1860 the money
in circulation in the United States
amounted to only $13.S5 for each in
dividual, in 1865 $1S, so, in 1870 81, so,
in 1876 $40. IL and in 1878 $t5.32 There
was an upward tendency from 1878 on
and by 1881 the amount of money in
circulation was S21.71 per capita, in
1884 S22.25, in 1891 $23 45 and in 1892
S24.52. In this connection it is inter
esting to remark that only two or three
of the great countries of the world
have as large circulating medium
per capita as has the United States.
There has been gratifying increase
in our commerce with other parts of
the world during the thirty two years
covered by this table, but distressing
decrease in the proportion of our COM
merce carried in American vessels.
Our imports and exports, according to
this statement, footed up an aggregate
in 1860 of S762, ,2Ss, $50. In 1892 it
amounted to S1,s57, ,6sO,61O. Thus the
expectation and importations comb
are today about two and half times
as much as they were in 1850. In the
matter of exports alone there has been
very gratifying increase. In 1860 the
exports of domestic merchandise were
1916, 242 ,423, while in 1899 they were ST.
5,732,O11. Thus the exports for 1899
were more than three times the exports
of 1860. The 1892 expectations were
the highest ever known in any year in
the history of the country.
One or two other points which this
table shows are also interesting. 1t
shows that in 1854 the coin value of
paper money then afloat was only 3S.7
cents on the dollar, by 1878 it had
reached "a and in 1879 it reached par
and has remained there ever since.
The commercial ratio of silver to gold
stood 1929 to one 1860 and gradually
increased until by 1874 it had reached
1917; in 1878, 1914; in 1886, 19.41 ank
in 1891, 22.73.