The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1898-02-15
SECRETARY GAGE PRoPEESIEs
a SURPLUS.

Secretary Gage is becoming very OPP
timistic, so optimistic that he is ventur-
ing upon that most dangerous of all
ground-that of prophecy concerning
what revenue viii result from the op-
Grafton of a revenue law. Mr.. Gage
was in Chicago the other day and talk
ed of the Dingley law. Taking" said
he, the receipts of the first ten days
of February as a basis for the year,
the Dingley tariff law will ip one year
discharge all the obligations of gov
ernmental expenses for the fiscal year,
ending with June. 1888, and will put a
surplus in the treasury of over $50, 000,-
600. This prophecy is based on what
the law has done, and believe it viii
prove to be substantially correct. 1
need say no more in favor of the meas
ure than this. 1t IS proving the saliva
ton of the government expense ac-
count. Instead of ending the fiscal
years with an enormous deficit, the law
viii place a handsome surplus in the
treasury each year. 1 cannot add any
thing to what 1 have heretofore said
concerning the general finances of the
government. The situation seems TO me
to be especially hopeful, and the peo-
pie at large have every reason to be
grateful
That is a most remarkable state
ment. We do not know what the re-
ceipts under the Dingley law for the
first ten days of February were, but
for the first FIVE days of the month they
were:
Customs ..-.--........--.-..--$2,957, 626 %
Internal revenue .....-.-..- 1850, 1O6 81
Miscellaneous ................ 321, 3S5 IS
Total -.............-.$5 So, 35S,06S 80
The expenditures for the correspond
ing period were:
Civil and miscellaneous. 81, 100000 90
War OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES 5lo,UUO w
Navy .-.-.--.-..--..---- olo,OVO w
indians z 7Sa O0O 0O
Pensions -...............-...- 4,1s2,cO0 %
Total ......................ss,s 5s.OoO 90
Excess of expenditures. IS 999, 9S1 40
The secretary says that 1.-THE Dingley
law will in one year discharge all the
obligations of governmental expenses
for the fiscal year, ending with June,
1898, and viii produce surplus in the
treasury of $50 600, OOO." He must mean
by this that the surplus of s3000O,O00
will be produced by June 90 1898,
though the language is ambiguous.
How is this going to be done? The de-
felt under the Dingley law up to the
close of business Thursday, February
10, 1898, was $50, 99S,S55. Besides produc-
ing revenue enough to meet all expen-
ditures from now till June 80, the Ding
ley law, to do what Secretary Gage
says 1t will, will have to produce in
round numbers, an excess of receipts
over expenditures of 81, 600. 900 a month
from February 1 to June 80, 1898. 1t
simply will not do it.
Secretary Gage says that his pro-
phecy is based on what the law has
done; the above calculations are based
upon exactly the same thing-what the
law has done, taking treasury figures
for it. The secretary says that in place
of deficit at the end of the fiscal years
the law will place a handsome surplus
in the treasury at the end of each fiscal
year; it is to be hoped that it will, but
hope is the only basis for the predic-
ton. The statement that the Dingley
law is proving the salvation of the gov
eminent expense account is lacking in
one element, that of foundation in fact
This prophecy of Secretary Cages is
a very remarkable one indeed, and how
he came TO make it is a surprising
thing. It makes it certain that while
and finance may be his forte
is not.