Fair play., 1912-12-14
PRESIDENT SENDS ANOTHER MESSAGE
Tells Congress About the Fiscal, Military, nsular
and Judicial Affairs Of the Nation, Including
Panama Canal and Tolls Established.


his messages to the short session. IL
deals with fiscal, military. insular and
judicial Affairs and In part IL as follows:
The condition OF the country with ref
erence to business could hardly be better.
While the four years OF the admintstra-
tion now drawing to a close have not de-
veloped great speculative expansion or
wide field of new Investment. the recov-
err and prog-ess made from the depress-
Ing condit fR,S' following the panic OF 1877
have beer steady and the Improvement
has been clear and easily traced In the
statistics. The business Of the country Is
now on n solid basis. Credits are not
unduly extended and every phase OF the
situation seems In a state of prepared
ness for period OF unexampled prosper
ity. Manufacturing concerns are running
at their full capacity and the demand for
labor was never so constant and growing.
The foreign trade of the country for this
year will exceed 1900. 900 900. while the
balance in our favor-that of the excess
of exports over imports-will exceed $780,
ooo.0 More than half our exports are
manufactures or partly manufactured
material, while our exports OF farm pro-
ducts do not show the same increase OF
domestic consumption. 1t Is year or
bumper crops; the total money value or
farm products will exceed g, 500. .ooo. 900. 1t
IA a year when the bushel or unit price
of agricultural products has gradually
fallen, and yet the total value OF the en-
tire crop Is greater by over S1.ooo. 900 900
than we have known in our history.
Condition Of the Treasury.
The condition of the treasury is very
satisfactory. The total interest-bearing
debt is $s63 TIL TO OF which $t34. .631. $50 con-
stiute the Panama canal loan. The nom
interest-bearing debt Is SSH, ,3ol, ,2s4 80. In
cfuding $346 67 ,0i6 Of greenbacks. We have
IN the treasury $50 .000. 900 in gold coin as
Q reserve against the outstanding green
backs: and in addition we have a cash
balance in the treasury as general fund
OF S167. .162. 1889. or an increase OF S26.yIe,-
So over the general fund last year
Receipts and Expenditures.
For three years the expenditures Of the
government have decreased under the In
huence of an effort to economize. This
year presents an apparent exception. the
estimate by the secretary Of the treasury
Of the ordinary receipts. exclusive of pos
tai revenues for the year ending June
%, 1914 indicates that they will amount
to S17o. .ooo,o 900. Tho sum of the estimates
Of the expenditures for that same year.
exclusive Of Panama canal disbursements
and postal disbursements payable from
postal revsnues Is s732 900. indicating a
deficit OF go, ,0o0, ,o00 For the year ending
June 30. 1918. similarly estimated receipts
were s6s7, 900 900. while the total corre-
spending estimate of expenditures for that
year, submitted through the secretary or
the treasury to congress, amounted to
3S56, 900 000 This shows an increase OF
S76 900 900 in the estimates for 1914 over
the total estimates Of 1913 This is due to
an increase of S25. .oOo, 900 In the estimate
for rivers and harbors for the next year
on projects and Surveys authorized by
congress; to an increase under the new
pension bill of ss2boo,ooo: and to an in
crease in the estimates for expenses OF
the navy department OF $24,ooe,0oo. the
estimate for the navy department for the
year 1918 included two battleships. Con-
gress made provision for only one battle
ship, and therefore the navy department
has deemed Il necessary and proper TO
make an estimate which includes the first
years expenditure for three battleships
in addition to the amount required for
work on the uncompleted ships now under
construction. In addition to the natural
increase in the expenditures for the un-
completed ships. and the additional bat
tleship estimated for. the other increases
are due to the pay required for 1000 or
more additional enlisted men In the navy,
and to this must be added the additional
cost Of construction imposed by the
change in the eight t-hour law which
makes It applicable to ships built In pri-
vate shipyards.
The president then explained at some
length the national reserve association
system recommended by the monetary
commission and urged congress to ex-
anime the plan impartially from all
standpoints and then to adopt some
plan which will secure the benefits de-
sired.
Concerning tho tariff he had little "a
say in view Of the fact that a new con-
gress has been elected on a platform
of tarif for revenue only.
Army Reorganization.
Our small army now consists of SO. 80!
men, excluding the 5000 Philippine scouts
Leaving out of consideration the coas'
artillery force, whose position Is fxed II
our various seacoast defenses. and tbs
present garrisons of our various insulai
possessions, we have today within this
continental United States a mobile arm,
of only about 25,0 900 men. This little fore,
must be still further drawn upon to sup
ply the new garrisons for the great nava
base =-As..c.. .= being established .. Pear
Harbor, in the Hawaiian islands. and t.
protect the locks now rapidly approaching
completion at Pansma. The forces re
naming in the United States are nov
scattered in nearly tifty posts, situated
for a variety of historical reasons n
twenty-four states. These posts contain
only fractions of regiments. averaging
less than 100 men each. In time OF peac,
Il has been our historical policy to ad
minister these units separately by geo
graphical organisation. In other words
our army In time OF peace has never bee,
united organization but merely scat
tered groups OF companiesf battalions an,
regiments. and the first task In time o
war has been to create out of these scat
tered units an army Mt for effective team
work and cooperation.
To the task of meeting these paten
defects, the war department has been ad
dressing itself during the past year 4
~ u.tx, In af xxgv inta WA
prepared by the war college division o
the general stan. This plan was thor
oughly discussed last summer at a serie
of open conferences held by the secretar.
Of war and attended by representative
from all branches OF the army and from
congress. In printed form II has beel
distributed to members OF congress- an
throughout the army and the nationa
guard ana widely through Institutions o
learning and elsewhere In the Unite,
states In It. for the nrst time. we hav
tentative chart for future progress.
Tho National Guard.
Under existing law the national guar
constitutes, after the regular army. tn
FIRST line OF national defense. Its or
ganixation.. discipline. training. and equip
ment, under recent legislation, have bee
.assimilateti as far as possible. to thos
OF the regular army. and it's practica
efficiency under the effect OF this train
ing, has very greatly Increased. Our ci's
zen soldiers under present condition
have reached stage Of development be
yond which they cannot reasonably b
asked to 60 without further direct az
sisthnce in the form of pay from the fed
eral government On the other hand. sue
pay from the national treasury would nc
be jupttHsd 'unleas II produced prope
equivalent n additional efficiency on u