The Washington times., 1901-06-30
END OF THE FISCAL YEAR.
Mr.. Gage Reviews the Govern
ment's Financial Condition.
The Most Successful season Past and
the Greatest Available Cash Bal
nnce in the Nations History-Out-
look as Favorable. as Ever Before.


the Greatest Available Cash Bal
ance in the Nations History-Out-
look as Favorable. as Ever Before.
AT the close of business Yesterday the
United States Government ended the most
| successful financial year in its history.
! The fiscal year ends on June go but as
the last day of the present fiscal period
happens to fall on Sunday, the records Of
the Treasury Department were virtually
complete at clock yesterday afternoon.
While the finances of the Government are
in most encouraging condition the com
merce and industries of the United States
as shown by official records kept during
the last twelve months have reached a
condition Of prosperity unprecedented, ex-
ports of domestic products amounting to
about billion and half of dollars, the
balance of trade being by far larger than
ever before
The United States Treasury has had
most remarkable year, and Secretary
Gage said Yesterday afternoon that the
! outlook for the fiscal year 1902 was as en-
couraging as at any time since the Gov
| ernment was established. So far as he
| could see there We're no rocks ahead, and
| he authorized the statement that he viii
continue indefinitely the purchase OF
the Treasury and the steady income from
sources of revenue to sustain him He
| said that he has no immediate intention
of resuming the refunding operations au-
! thorized by the act Of March a. 1900
This year, for the first time the Secre-
! tary of the Treasury purchased bonds in
| the open market without advertising for
proposals, as has been the custom here
tofore. The Treasury has received dur
ing the fiscal year more than 1t has
spent by the sum of SO, Col, ,0i21a which
is the largest surplus that has been real
lzed in any year In the last decade except
1859. 1t would have exceeded by far even
the record of last year had not purchases
OF bonds been made to the amount of
nearly s15.c00.O00. Yet, as Mr.. Gage said
yesterday, a large surplus is no. TO be
regarded as an unmixed blessing, and il
Is only valuable in a summary of our
hnaHces as showing the prosperous con-
ditlon OF the Treasury as compared with
the years of Democratic Administration
when deficiency in the revenues caused
repeated issues of bonds and plunged the
nation deeper into debt One significant
thing about the Treasury statement on |
this last day of the fiscal year is that |
the available cash balance, amounting 20
li5,oSS,2 ,22i23. is larger than ever before |
in the history of the country At the |
same time, the stock of gold in the |
Treasury vaults has reached the enor-
nous sum Of nearly S5o0. 600 0O0-a condf- |
ton which two or three years ago was |
entirely unlocked Tor
The briefest record of the Treaspry |
finances during the last year Is az follows: |
Reeeipts-From customs, $23S, ,7sg, 1908:
from internal revenue, sos, Iii. 410. .95; from |
miscellaneous sources, S41, ,547, ,1571s; a total |
OF s5S5,5is, ,369 Expenditures-For civil and |
miscellaneous purposes, $l22. .2S6. .0sS 80; for
the military establishment SI44 54s 912 %;
for the navy. $50 $50 705 90; for Indians. So
ss4.9I5o6; for pensions, S139, ,32I $50 20; for
interest, s., 1886 Il; total of s509 9f7,-
266-sl The receipts from customs were
about S6.Oo0,0o9 larger this year than last
year, and from internal revenue about |
SlS, ,0o0, 900 larger. The War Department
was more expensive this year by
about $40 900 than it was IN 1900. the /
na--X about 81 600 600 more. ami the civil
and miscellaneous expenses about 81, co.,
OJ moro. On the other hand, the refund
ing of the national debt has caused a saw
ing of interest already of about 5000 0G9
The receipts of the fiscal period just
closed have been increased 10 the extent
OF more than S2. $50 by the sale of the
Sioux City aad Pacific Railroad, but this
item does not compare, of course, with
the similar item of about SOS 000, 90 three
I
est in the Union Pacific was disposed Of
or with the one of 1893, when nearly SI2.-
10000 was received on account of the
Central Pacific.
In talking over the favorable condition
OF the Treasury finances yesterday, Sec |
retary Gage spoke OF the radical new de-
parture of buying bonds, without adver- |
tisins for proposals. Il considered the
proposition very thoroughly before decid- !
ing TO carry it out" said Mr.. Gage, as
pertaining what the law was. and examin- |
ing into the condition of the Treasury | ,
with good deal Of deliberatlon. ] found | !
that. although it had been the custom to
for proposals whenever ii was
proposed to buy bonds, there was no law 7
70 prevent the Secretary of the Treasury | I
from entering the open market in the !
same way as private individual might
10, and thus avoiding a concerted rise IN | {
prices In March, when l announced that
bonds would be purchased If offered at a :
price acceptable 10 the Treasury Depart
llent l explained very fully what condi- | /
ions would regulate the determination of / :
he price to be paid II is not necessary :
o repeat that. The result is that we have :
bought nearly $l5,090GlG worth of bonds 7
which would have matured within the :
leXt six years. ] made the purchases be- 4
,ause the surplus funds in the Treasury | !
uiiy warranted IL, and / have been graft
led that the action has been received .
With universal approval
" W e now have maturing within the BeXt
seven years about s359 900, 100 worth of | 4
oonds. 1t viii be necessary, therefore, to 4
axe up something like so 100000 worth of | I
'HA4hS TX td'A > NeiA VI AltdA Iltiibu. we Z
cannot forecast the future, but II pros I
Derity continues the purchases can be
made without embarrassing the Govern I
nent finances or injuring any private in ! {
-erests. Ia case II proves impossible 10
purchase all Of them an extension of GER
-ain issues can be made. But by buying
bonds we are doing now, and rs we Z
Expect 70 continue 10 do. the whole world :
las IN object lesson in the stability of
)ur Government, and financial interests
everywhere must be impressed with the :
ability Of the Government OF the United 7
states 10 discharge all its obligations ami
lrotect its creditors" !
The Secretary is pleased with the result
4 the refunding operations by which y
bout siGJ 0Oo,c0O worth of high interest y
caring and some short-term bonds were !
Onvertcd into the per cent lOug-term !
onds Of 1890 The results hi believes | y
re all that the trainers Of the refunding :
IVY could have expected. and the saving a
[ interest is a material advantage to the !
Government and TO the people who pay &
axes.
Referring TO the outlook for the com )
lg year Secretary Gage predicted that :
II account of large funds 10 be disbursed | O
n account Of the annual appropriations =
ecause Of rebates TO be made for internal =
syenue stamps. under the new law. and ! :
y reason Of dull business and CONSEQUENT | y
sdUced customs receipts. IN July ana Au- | =
ust, there will be deficit IN the Treas | =
ry during the first two or three months | =
T the fiscal year about 10 begin. He be- | =
ewes. however. that there viii be "A sur :
lus in the fan, and that this Will in ! ?
rease during the year. despite the fact !
lat on the basis of the last years re- | 2
irns there viii be a reduction of about | ?
"a IHaI 4sFaH :