The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1894-11-29

Ane'uulhS tne puDnc DEBT the
Iotal receipts on all accounts We're S724.-
O0693S, and he expenditures were $685.
JOo,ooZ, AT the close of business on June
80, 1898, there stood ON the books of the
department charged to the treasurer a
balance of ST3S, 467 $50. Adding to this
the receipts on all accounts gives ST.
162,4IL994 rs the total to be accounted
for, and deducting the expenditure,
leaves a balance of $I63, 565, $40 on June
50, 1871. In addition to these balances.
however, there We're other Liabilities aris-
ing from the postal revenues, from dis
bursting officers and from other sources.
which brought the total to S776041. sos
ut the latter.
After setting aside the amounts treated
as unavailable, the principle of which are
the deposits made with the states under
the law of 1866 there remained the sum,
OF SI46,o3S, $50 in 1893, and the sum of
$I10,31O559 in 1892 OF the balance.
the sums of S5S4, $685. 20 and $616,15
90 respectively were on deposit for the
redemption of outstanding certificates and
treasury notes, leaving $161, 994, 735 and
Slo9, lo4, I39 as the balances on account
of the general fund. The treasurer re-.
marks that the impairment of the dead
reserve, rendering necessary the issue of
bonds in February, was chiefly caused by.
the depletion of the treasury, resulting
~" revenues. ENpn when
the supply of paper had become so re-.
duced that the treasury was obliged to,
pay large sums of gold in the ordinary
disbursements, the coin was freely re-
turned in the revenues. Even when gold.
exports were heavy the metal was fur
nished by bankers from their vaults or,
was obtained from the treasury for gold
certificates, of course without impairment
to the reserve. During the last two years
however, the treasury has been called
upon to furnish nearly the whole of the
requirements for expectation and there
have been recently withdrawals for other
uses. To the end of September, last,
the total redemptions of United States
notes in gold since the resumption of
specie payments were S1S1 100000 and
the total redemptions of treasury notes.
in gold from their first cause We're $685.
100000.
The two important events of the year
affecting the condition of the pub
lie debt, were the issue of $780,
OOO,O0O per cent bonds to re-
plenish the gold reserve, and the stop
ping of the purchase of silver bullion
by the issue of treasury notes. With
reference to the retirement of the treas
ury notes, the treasurer says that prior
to Auguts, 1893, the treasury has been
able to provide for the redemption of
treasury notes in silver dollars out of
the holdings of free silver, so that there.
had not been up to that time any i'm
parment of the total amount of the sill
Yer fund accumulated under the act.
On the third of that month, however,
the silver dollars and bullion in the treas
ury was reduced TO the amount required
by the law to be retained for the pay
ment of outstanding treasury notes and
certificates and the demand for the re-
demption of notes continuing in eonse
quence of the scarcity of small denomi
nations of currency, il became necessary
to draw upon the dollars coined especial
ly for that purpose. The silver fund be-
ing thus impaired the notes so redeemed
were cancelled in order TO preserve the
required equality between the silver in.
the treasury and notes outstanding. The
total amounts of the notes retired i'm
this way up to Oct 81, was S4790,434.
The amount of new issues of the United
States paper currency put into circulation
during the year was S350,00,O00, having
been exceeded but once, in 1892. The
amount of worn and mutilnted notes re-
deemed was $319,002, 300. This also has
been exceeded but once in 1893. The to.
tai paper circulation reached its highest
point in May last, when it stood ut 81 ,175,-
100000. Since then there has been =
slight contraction, caused chiefly by tho
gradual redemption and retirement Of
gold certificates, the issue of which was
as the law requires, when the
gold reserve of the treasury falls below
100000.
The management of the Columbian
Exposition having finally declined to de-
fray the expenses of the recOining of the
Columbian half dollars which have found
their way into the treasury, they have.
been offered to the public at par mex
change for gold or gold certificates, and
considerable sum of them has been dis
tributed in that manner. The Isabella
quarters in the treasury are retained for
the requistiOn of the board of lady man
ayers Of the exposition.
The amount Of counterfeit silvew coins
and fractional currency detected ut aIo.
offices of the treasury during the year
was $4,000, an increase of $500 over the
year before.
Under the provisions Of the last In
dian appropriation the face of certain
bonds and stocks formerly belonging 50,
the Indian trust fund has been placed
upon the books of the treasury 10 the
credit of the several tribes to draw in
terest at 3 per cen per annum and
the bonds and stocks have become the.
of the United States. There
was an increase during the year Of ST.
5J2, go in the face value of the bonds
held on account of the sinking fund of
the Pacific railroads, which amounted on.
June 30, to $1S,960,000.
STRUCK A TORPEDO.
WogbinUton Nov 30 -'Nhn Ehinacr.