Cottonwood report. [volume] (Cottonwood, Idaho) 1893-1901, 1898-11-25
FIGURES ON THE NEW TARIFF.
Dingley Measure Brings In Half a
Million q Day.

Washington, Nov. 2l.--The discussion
as to the revenue-producing qualities O
the present tariff law lends especial inter
est to series of tables just issued by the
treasury bureau of statistics showing the
receipts from various sources by months
during long term of years. An exam
ination of these figures shows that the
customs receipts of the treasury depart
ment now amount to one half of the ordi
nary expenditures of the government
which is about the usual proportion al
looted to the branch of the revenue-pro.
ducing service.
The ordinary expenditures of the gov
eminent aside from those of the postof-
fee, which is practically self-sustainingl
are usually calculated at about 81 900, 600
day, and averaged during the years 1894
to 1897 $500 100000 per annum, and at
about the same ration in 1898, emitting
the Pacific railroad and extraordinary
war expenditures. The general plans of
those charged with the duty of providing
the revenues for the government have
contemplated the production of one-half
of the necessary expenditures from Gus
toms and the remaining half from inter-
nal revenue and miscellaneous sources
or, in other words, a half million dollars
day from customs and half million
dollars day from internal revenue and
miscellaneous.
1t is interesting, therefore, to examine
the detailed figures of the receipts of the
government during the time in which the
present customs law has operated under
normal conditions and to determine
whether it is supplying its assigned pro-
portion-one-half of the normal expendi-
lures.
Half a Million n Day.
The daily statement of receipts and ex-
penditures issued by the treasury depart
ment shows that on December II, the
l4Oth day of the present financial year,
the customs receipts had during these no
days amounted to $73,24O,34O. OF this
sum little over 81 100000 was from the
duty placed ON tea by the war revenue
act, so that fully $72,000,O00 of the $751;
240, 429 received in these l40 days are the
legitimate normal revenue from the rates
levied by the customs law enacted in 1897,
or little more than the promised rate of
a half million dollars day from Gus
toms under that act. The receipts from
customs during the last ten years have
averaged $l5.l99,O00 per month. This
ten years term includes the operation of
four tariff laws, and it is therefore inter-
esting to compare the operations of the
new law at its various stages with this
general average during ten years term
which includes the operations of four
tariff acts.
AS it was not expected that the new
law would in its first few months operate
in its production Of customs
revenues, owing to the excessive importa-
tions just prior to its enactment, it is
not improper to show, first, the average
receipts during the first four months of
its operation included in the calendar
year 1897, and also to consider separately
the last four months of its operation, dat
ing from the beginning of the present
fiscal year.
Receipts from customs, monthly aver
age, ten years, lSS9-9S, $l5, l99, 900; Aug
ust to December, 1897, 1927 900; Janu-
airy TO November l, 1898, $l5,07l 900;
July l to November l, 1898, $l5,933, 900.