East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current, 1905-09-16
DOMESTIC FINANCE AND CON
SUMPTION.

Secretary Metcalf has issued the sta
-dstical abstract for the year 1904. 1t
shows the national debt at Sl1.S3 per
capita and the interest at 80 cents
The total expenses of the federal gov
eminent are Sill per capita. The
money in the country was s34.29 per
capita The exports were $17.S7. Of
our agriculturRl exports. cotton was
so per cent, wheat is per cent, crude
mineral oil % per cent.
The extent Of the home consumption
per capita is especially interesting, as
showing the per centage of surplus re-
manning for export. We retained for
nome consumption per capita, of cot
ron rs pounds, of wheat 8 bushels, of
corn and cornmeal 26 bushels, of su-
gar rs pounds; we consumed of cof-
fee Al pounds. of tea l pound. our
spirit bill was not very heavy, for we
consumed per capita of distilled spirits
1 gallon and half. malt liquors IS
gallons, and wines only half a gallon.
II is rather remarkable tnat we each
drank only one gallon more of whiskey
'than we did Of wine. The vintner
seems to be gradually overtaking the
. oIistller. OF wool we consumed each
1-2 pounds, of which 81 per cent
vas foreign wool
The revenues of the postoffice were
S1.76 per capita the cost was $1.S6.
We each, therefore. had to pay 10
cents out Of our pockets to keep the
nails going. Our public schools cost
MS $11.1O per capita of the population
Of school age.
The immigration for the year was
So per cent of the total increase in
population This is a portentous fact
We are getting more increase by i'm
migration than by native births.
Our imports of merchandise fol
consumption we're s12.O2 per capita
There is food for reflection that only
10 per cent of our foreign trade, ex
ports and imports, was carried OF
American ships. In 1877 American
ships carried 81 per cent and the de
cline has been steady from that time
until 1901, when il fell To- 8 per cent
The small rise in 1904 is perhaps &C
counted for by an increase Of 3 pc
cent in American tonnage on deeI
water The population Of California
per square mile was 3, that of Mas
zachusetts 34S. The densest popula
ton in the Union is in the District o.
Columbia, 4645 per square mile, bu
It is practically all city population
and cannot be compared rairly with
the totals OF states which include ur
ban and rural both.
The clearing house exchanges To-
-ihe Pacific states were 50, 0,77O,740
of which san Francisco mad $1,513,
927,257, or more than half. Our i'm
ports from countries which are nov
Threatening our trade by differentla
tariffs were: From Germany, 3109,
1851; from France, SSl,410,347
Italy. s33,15S,O42i Spain. sS,346,173-
a total of &2S2,1OS,116. our export
20 the same countries were S35O,542,
SIT. The apparent balance Of trad
against them is the reason for thei
proposed tariff war, on the result o
which hangs the fate of total inter
national trade of 35s2.645.9S3.
The imports and exports at Sa
Francisco were s37,542.97s. and tn
duty paid was s7,SO4.7sO. The i'm
ports and exports at this port wer
highest in 1891. being then 360,943
299, but the duty collected was 81
64s,752. only little more than laI
year on a smaller volume OF trad
Our volume OF trade has been risin