Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1902-12-03
W. B. Moses & Sons, F. St., Cor. nth.

| the construction of a canal connecting the
| Atlantic and Pacific oceans includes, among
other provisions, authority for the Score
tary of the Treasury to borrow on the
credit of the United States from time to
time, as the proceeds may be REQUIRED tn
ueIray expenditures authorized by the act,
the sum or Sl300O000O, or SO much thereof
as may be necessary, and to issue therefor
| United States bonds redeemable after ten
years and payable after thirty years from
cate OF issue, bearing interest at the ra to
OF per cent per annum.
mere being no reference in the act to the
aVallablllty OF these bonds as security for
the circulation of national banks it is be-
LeFed that they can be received by the
department on such account only upon such
terms as the older classes of United States
bondS now outStanding-that is TO saw a
hationai bank depositing canal bonds as Sc
! curlty Tor circulation would be REQUIRED
TO pay a tax of per cent each wear ia tha
government on account of such circulation
l MS would place the per cent canal bonds
at a great DISADVANTAGE as compared with
the per cent consols of 1890 A bank de-
posting the eonsos is required to nav a
tax amounting only to one-half of ner
cent per annum
AS 1t is no doubt desired by Congress that
the Secretary shall have power TO ohta in
the pest terms available in negotiating the
canal bonds, 1t is recommended that the
act OF June %, 1902, be amended so as to
provide that any national bank circulation
secured by deposit of canal bonds NAV he
subject only to the same tax as that inn
posed On circulation secured by the . ner
cent conSolS of 1880.
District of Columbia's Funded Debit
Inc net expenditures on account of the
District Of Columbia for the fiscal wear 1902
were S9,56 142 The net revenues deposited
IN the treasury on this account for the
same period were 81 217. S4143
Under the operations of the sinking funds
the net reduction of the bonded debt during
the year was ssh 800, and of the annual
interest charge $43.235 10. Since the close
or the fiscal year the debt has been reduced
oy the purchase of 365 per cent bonds for
500. 500, and per cent thirty-year funding
bonds for 81, 10O and will be further
reduced by the redemption of thirty-year
funding bonds for S494, 500 maturing No
Vember !, 1902.
The treasurer estimates that the sum of
500. 40S will be sufficient for interest and
sinking fund on the funded debt for the
fiscal year 1904, and recommends that this
sum be made permanent annual appropri-
alton until the debt of the District of Co.
lumbia shall! be extinguished, and also that
he be authorized to purchase United States
bonds with the funds provided for the sink
ing fund when he Is unable to purchase
bonds OF the District advantageously The
estimate for interest and sinking fund for
1904 Is $23S, 539.97 less than the appropria-
ton for this purpose for 1903 The treas
urer states that this reduction is made pos
sibie by the recent refunding of the 6 and
per cent bonds of the District into bonds
bearing lower rate of interest and their
final redemption.
The total amount of the bonded debt at
the close of the fiscal year was S14.1e65 $50
Of this sum $13.6S3 $50 consists of 3.65 per
cent bonds.