The Mena weekly star., 1897-05-12
VIEWS.
He Says Surplus Revenue Gan Be Used
 to Redeem Greenbacks.
SUGAR BEET CULTIVATION.
Secretary of Agriculture Wilson Hopes This Country Will Soon Produce Enough Sugar for It's Needs-The Tax
 on Distilling.

WAsHINaToN, May 11.-Chairman Dingley, in carefully revised state ment about the tariff bill, says:
 Where there is revenue sufficient to pay the current expenditures of the government and leave small surplus, and run takes place upon the treasury reserve by the presentation of greenbaclIs for redemption these notes do not have to be paid out to meet deficiencies and are held in the treasury, either for ex- change for gold for the payment of bonds. The difficulty of the past four years has been that we have had a constant deficiency and to meet this deficiency the greenbaclSs presented and redeemed have immediately been paid out again, thus placing them in position requir- ing second and even third redemption.
 UnquestIonably, if we can now secure abun- dans revenue to meet all expenditures and leave Q small surplus to gradually reduce the princi- pal of the war debt, there will be little danger of any serious prolonged presentation of green backs for Fedemption; not only because the facts that we have solvent government will aid in maintaining confidence and the credit of the government but also because everyone willrec- ognize the fact that the government will be able to hold greenbaclzs redeemed so long as there is 0 tendency for run on the treasury It is for this reason that the revenue legislation now pending, designed to secure sufficient revenue to carry on the government, is of itself funda- mental step in maintaining the credit of the
 
 preciation of the currency.
 In reply to the objection that the holding of 1 greenbacks in case of run on the treasury, except for the purpose of exchange in gold, would tend to contract the currency, 1t is only necessary to say that every dollar of green backs redeemed and temporarily held lets out dollar tn gold, and therefore, that the amount
 s :ssos.Gsy !s not dts1rih hnted IT for example, we have $50 900 600 of gold held in our reserve and $50, 900 of greenbacks arc presented for redemption, there goes out at the same time s50,000000 of gold. In ordinary times when confidence reigns supreme, busi- ness is good and the revenues sufficient to meet | all expenditures and leave considerable suY- plus, there will be no run upon the treasury aud l no necessity for holding greenbaoks to protect i our reserve. Then the surplus will be used to reduce the principal of the interest-bearing debt just as 1t was from 1879 to 1908
 Sugar Beet Cultivation.
 WASHINGTON, May 11.-Secretary of Agriculture Wilson says:
 IL is evident thab the people of th8 Cntted 1 States have faith in the beet sugar industry. We have supplied in the s8s few weeks 20 0Oe farmers of the country with sugar beet seeds for experiments during tho coming season. l They.are scattered through practically every | state north of the extreme southern line of states The people as far south as the Caro- linas, Tennessee and Texas believe that they can grow sugar beets successfully, and we are l quite willing to give them full opportunity to make Q test everywhere. If they succeed in extending the beet sugar territory down to she l very line of the cane sugar area there ought to be no difficulty in producing in the United States all of the $500 GOO 000 worth of sugar for which we are now going abroad annually. I ! hope to have broad line extending across the map from the Atlantic to the Pacific in a com paratiyely short time, indicating the practical beet sugar belt of tho country, in which capi- talists as well as farmers may safely enter upon the work of supplying the people of the country with sugar.
 The Distillery Tax
 WAsHINGToN, May 11.-In reply to a senate resolution as to the effect of the present rate of internal revenue tax on distilled spirits, tho collection of reve- nue, etc, Secretary Gage to-day re- piled that according to the tables of previous years the highest revenue rate would be 20 cents per gallon. He recommends a rate of 90 cents and if the reduction be made a return to the bonded period of three years. Among other changes he recommends is that a special tax of not less than $500 or more than al cooper annum be imposed on the industry of distilling. to be de- termined by the capacity of the distil- lery; that only stills having q capacity of 20 gallons or more shall be entitled to registry and permitted to operate The secretary says the present rate of tax has had the effect of greatly in- l craaSin1t illicik diStillinp