The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1904-07-30
SATURDAY, JULY 80, 1904.
DOCTORS DISAGREE

There is a painful difference of opin-
Ion among Republican authorities eli
the fiscal situation and the present
condition of the treasury. In his re-
Spouse to- the committee who notified
him of his nomination on Wednesday
President Roosevelt said: I'm the
fiscal year that has just closed the ex-
cess of income over the ordinary ex-
penditures was 100000. This does
not take account of the $5O,OOO.O0O ex-
pended out of the accumulated sur
plus for the purchase of the. isthmian
canal" Upon this showing, and some
further boosting of the treasury re-
port, the president did quite little
growing
We turn now to statement recent
ly made by Secretary Leslie NJ Shaw
in an interview with the special CORE
spondent of The Globe. Mr.. Shaw
said: 1.-THE disbursements thus far in
July have been $21 100000 more than
the current receipts" Asked if he ex-
pected there would be a surplus re-
naming at the end of the year, he
said: No, 1 do not. In my annual
report to congress last year predict
ed that there would be a treasury
deficit of $23,O0O.0eo for the fiscal year
: 1905. I estimated that the deficit for
the fiscal year 1904 would be $4,000
600, and that would have turned out to
be true if it had not been for the large
payments for the Panama canal and
the extra appropriation for the st.
Louis exposition
We find President Roosevelt stating
that there is a surplus of Sc, 000, 900 for
the fiscal year just closed. We find
Secretary Root saying that his esti-
mate of s14.OoOG0O deficit for that
year would have been realized, only
that We had to pay $4,000. 900 for our
rights or wrongs in Panama, and
therefore the deficit must be in
creased by that amount. Nobody is
more expert in juggling with figures
than Republican campaigner. We
leave the eminent executive of the
United States and the eminent secre-
tary of the treasury to settle between
themselves which is right as to the
condition of the treasury for the last
fiscal year.
There isn't any doubt at all about
what is going to happen in the future.
Secretary Shaw says that he still
thinks the deficit of $4,000, 900 prophe
sled for the year ending next June
would be correct if congress had made
no more liberal appropriations than If
did before. But he says that congress
exceeded his idea of generosity by
something like $4,000, 000, "and s5
other factors remaining the same. if
would appear that my estimate of the
deficit for this fiscal year would have
TO be Increased accordingly" IF the
secretary of the treasury Is right. then
we may anticipate a deficit of $4,000
600, in round numbers, for the current
fiscal year. He hints that this NAV be
cut down by diverting thirds of
the amount from the sinking f,,nd
which would be characterfstica1lv
Republican procedure.
BY no means the least interesting
feature in this interview with Score
tary Shaw is his comparison of tho
Wilson tariff and the Dingley act. He
says that the former was a much
better revenue producer than the Ding
ley law is, relatively. speaking" He
adds further the very significant sem
tence: The Dingley tariff is a tariff
Tor prosperity" Golden words of wis.,
dom seldom fall from the lips of Les
ne M. Shaw, but this is an exception.