New-York tribune., 1894-01-01

THE TREASURY CONFRONTED WITH TIE
PROSPECT or 4 VAST DEFICIT.
SPEEDY ACTION pY CONGRESS NECESSARY TO
AVERT DlsAsTFR-IN ESTIMATES
OF THE Loss OF REVENUE THE FRUIT
OF DEMOCRATIC JUGGLING
WITH FINANCE.
rry -rIrGrspn - THE T7IBryE.l J


| Washington Dec 31.-Thc rc is n feeling among
! Conrressrnen and others who have been careful,
observers Of the dwindiing resources Of the
! Treasury and the steady decrease IN tho rev.
cnue from customs and internal taxes that the
| financial affairs Of the Government ar" rapidly
/ nearing q crisis. and that speedy ana decisive
action bv Congress will be required To avert
disaster The impairment Of the gold reserNe
would be enough of itself t. attract attention
and excite unoasiness if il We're not coupled
with a steady depletion of the current cash re
sources Of the Treasury There Is a strong aus
picicn amounting indeed. to belief In tn" minds
Of some of the lcst-informcd mcl In public liz"
! outside the Treasury Department that III" "sti-
mate given IN Secretary Cariislc's annual report
of the probable cefcit at the "Hd 81 TIE cur
rent fiscal year S2>. 900 c00-was mere arbitrary
estimate rather thar one careiU.i} deduced from
the rocei;ts Of the first four months OF tho year
and the prcba biIitias Of til. succe ding eight
months Men Of long experience and cnrciu
observation express the opinion that The Treas
urv deficit at the end of June 1894 Will hH
nearer $50 900. 600 than sioOoo.ooo. regardless %
any revenue Legislation which may be enacted
in the mean tine. and they point to Secretary
Carlise's recommendation in favor e an issue
of s5oOCOco interest-beartng obligations. pay
able after one year from the date of issue as
proof that he is OF the same c:inion.
The belief is also growing that the Com
Inlttee on Ways and Means has So botchcd its
( work as to add TO the present and prospective
mbarrassments Of the Treasury. From the
tine that the majority of the committee began
to frame a revenue bill nearly four months ago.
II has been known that the result Of It's work
would be a measure involving heavy reduction
in the revenues from customs. which would
have to be made good from additional and new
Internal taxes. For time the country was
given to understand that this reduction would
not exceed $40 900 $50 10 $4,000 COO when the bil
was supposed 70 be completed II was rather re-
nciantly admitted that the probable loss of Gus
toms revenue would be ahou. S62Ooo"w. ana
when the calculations of ;he Treasury experts
we're completed they showed loss OF sCo,4O1-
COO OF 800 600 o0c 10 s2jor0 900 more than the
original estiinat-. But these calculations were
ba scd upon the importations Of 1892. and later
calculat lions based on the imporiations Of 1893
show loss Of s75 7O7 900. which is s3Oooo,o0o 20
s35 600 600 in excess Of the original estimate and
80. 900 900 larger than the estimate based upon
LAST years importations.
OF course, these varying estimates, couple!
with the uncertainty az to when tn" proposed
law would 20 into operation, have had an
effcc; not only upon the receipts from customs
but from internal revenue as well. In The hrs,
five months Of the current nscai year me re-
cciDts from the latter source fell off SS,Ilo.itc as
compared with the corresponding period oi ia''
year More than threc-fOurths Of this loss was
on distilled spirits. and nearly one-fourth on
tobacco cigars and cigarettes. And now Tour
months after the Ways and Means Committee
began its work. the country Is as much IN me
dark az ever as to the probable rccoinineHda-
tions Of the committee in respect to internal
revenue legislation 1t is true that the S"crc-
tary Of the Treasury has offered certain recon-
mendations but they We're not made public
until few days ago. and nobody feels certain
OF their adoption. or knows whether II adop'"d
they will yield revenue sufficient To make good
the enormous deficit in customs revenue when
the majority Of the Ways and Means Committc"
deliberately proposes To add TO IA probable deficit
Of $4,000 600 "a the end Of the current fiscal
year.
|. the Secretary OF the Treasury should b"
authorized to issue one-ycar interest -bearing OBJ
legations for the latter amount. the revenues OF
1895 would have To be increased IRON some source
by about $l27 600 900. follows: Deficit In Gus
toms revenue. $15 10000. principal OF one-year
notes. $4,000 900: one years interest on the same
at 3 per cent. 81 100000. This is not cheerful
outlook when certain other facts are taken into
consideration. The total receipts from Internal
revenue during the year ended June 30 ls?5
amounted to about sl6l. 900 Secretary Car
isles estimate Of receipts from the same source
under the existing law for the year ending June
80 1894 is $3.50 900 0oo sl0Oo0OO less. but that
estimate is probably at least So 900 900 too large
His estimate Of receipts from internal revenue
upon the basis Of existing laws for the year end
ing June 80 ls9J is $l60 600. and his estimate
of the total revenues and expenditures for the
same year leaves n balance OF about B.0OOOoo
In favor OF the Treasury on July l. 1879. These
estimates do not. Of course, take into account
the probable deficit of s127. 100000 above men,
toned. so that the probability Is that additional
internal taxation sufficient TO yield N2l 100000 In
1885, making a total Of s2Sl0Oo.oOO. will be re-
ouircd to prevent a deficit at the end Of that
year In other words. the internal oev"nue re-
ccipts for 1895 must be Increased more than Is
ncr cent above the estimate OF the Secretary OF
thc Treasury in order to meet the ordinary ex-
ncnditures OF the Government. exclusive OF the
sinking fund. II the Wilson bill shall become
law.
THE SAN FRANCISCO At PERNAMB'CO.
Wash.n,,ion Dec. 3l.-Secretary Iicrbcr; was ad
,sed bv cable to-day OF the arrival Of The San Fran
~ LII.