The L'Anse sentinel. (L'Anse, L.S., Mich.) 18??-current, 1897-01-02
cARLIsLE's TREASURY REPORT.
Tho Democratic Idea of Financial
Economy.

1
Economy.
The report Of the secretary of the
treasury on the state of the national
finances is not cheerful document.
The deficit for the fiscal year which
ended June 30 last was $25,2o0,00O. 10
estimates the deficit for the present
fiscal year at $64.50o,000 The year has
not quite half gone, and the deficit is
over Si0,0o0,000.
SO the shortage may be about ss0,-
100000. 1t certainly will be larger
than the secretary's estimate. for Mr..
Carlisle has been optimistic and mis-
| taken in all his guesses on the subject
| Of revenue since he went into oiHcc.
| He has not forecast the future correctly
once. His promised SURPRISES have be-
come deficits. The deficits have been
greater than he has estimated.
| The secretary assumes also that there
will be deficit of S45.750,oC0 for tho
fiscal year ending on June 30 1907.
That is based on the assumption that
the laws, the present business condi-
tions and the existing scale of public
expenditures remain unchanged.
If ordinary business activity should
be resumed, and the capacity of the
country should become what it was
prior to 1893, the secretary thinks there
might be no deficit for the ensuing
year.
But while Mr.. Carlisle does not pre-
tend to be absolutely certain that the
conditions will be such during the
fiscal year 1So7-'0S as to make the rev.
enucs of the government under exist
ing laws equal to it's expenditures, he
argues against any change in those
laws in the way of increasing duties.
He stands by the Wilson-Gorman law.
The secretary makes q long argu-
ment to prove that there should be 70
change in the customs duties. He
points to the increases in the quantities
and values of exported manufactures.
He finds therein evidence Of capacity to
compete successfully with the outside
world.
The secretary sees an increase in OK
ports at time when the home market
was so depressed and it's ability to con-
sumo so lessened TINT manufacturers
had to send their goods abroad and
offer them at low prices to dispose of
them. From that he draws the conclu-
sion that protective duties cannot be
hereafter justified on the plea that they
are necessary for the encouragement CT
capital or the security of labor"
The secretary contends that higher
customs duties will not give adequate
revenue. He forgets the case of sugar.
IF the duty had not been taken Off it in
1890 there would he no deficiency now.
lie thinks that if the expenditures con-
tinue to increase, and protective duties
are maintained, new sources of rev.
enue will have to be looked for.
He makes a free trade argument
which has little to do with the ques-
ton of revenue. The republicans con-
tend that some of the duties of tho
present law do not give adequate pro-
| lection. They contend also that the
duties, taken as n whole, do not furnish
sufficient revenue, and will give more il
raised somewhat.
The secretary's only specific remedy
for the inadequacy Of revenue is n re-
duction of expenditures. He breaches
economy to congress-, a body which does
not know what economy is. The secre-
tui vi tiS X YOU ihNhSupO liL
expenditures during the last seven
years. For part of that time the TO-
publicans were in power and for part
the democrats.
Governmental expenditures do i'm
crease yearly, and necessarily so. They
grow inevitably with the population.
There are more things for the general
government to do and more people for
II to do them for. So the revenues must
increase or the government viii not be
able to discharge the duties it owes it's
citizens.
The unnecessary expenditures have
increased also. Congress is a wasteful
body. How 1t can be made otherwise
Mr.. Carlisle does not state. The house
of representatives was extravaganza
when he was speaker. Congress was
eXtravagant when his party ruled and
he was secretary Of the treasury. He
ought to prescribe some better cure for
deficit thnn rigid congressional
economy.
But all the secretary's recommended
tons are perfunctory. No attention
will be paid to them. A new congress-
win meet in three months. It will so
to work in its own way to ret moro
revenue, and will get it.-Chicago Trib-