Democratic Sentinel, Volume 6, Number 36, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 6 October 1882 — THE TREASURY STATEMENT. [ARTICLE]

THE TREASURY STATEMENT.

Tlie Great Extravagance of Republican Congresses Clearly Shown. [Washington Telegram to Detroit Free Press.] The Chief of the Warrant Divis on of the Treasury Department recently completed the statement of the receipts and expenditures of the Government for the fiscal year 1882. The figures in detail have just been verified by the officers of the Register of the Treasury, and they will now stand on the books of the department as the official record, which will be transmitted to Congress next December in the annual report of the Secretary of the Treasury. These figures are embodied in the statement submitted below: NET KEVENUE FOK THE FISCAL TEAK 1882. Customs $220,410,730.35 Internal revenue 140,4!) ,505.45 Direct tax ’ 100,141.09 Sales of public lands 4, 53,140.37 Miscellaneous 31,703,042.52 Total $403,525,250.28 The customs receipts were over four millions larger than during any other year in the history of the Government. In 1872 they were $216,370,286.77. Only twice previous to 1882 were they over two hundred millions. Tiie internal-revenue receipts during 1882 were larger than during any year since 1870, when they reached siß4,800,756.49. The receipts from the sales of public lands were about one million larger than during any year since 1856, when they amounted to $8,917,644.93. Exclusive of the receipts from premiums on gold and the sales of gold coin, which were quite large a few years ago, the receipts from miscellaneous sources during the year 1882 were larger than during any other year in the history of the Government. • NET ORDINARY EXPENDITURES FOR THE FISCAL YEAR, 1882. Civil aud miscellaneous $ 57,219,950.98 War Department 43,570,494.19 Navy Department 15,0 2,046.26 Indians 9,736,747.40 Pensions ..... 61,345,193.95 Interest on public debt -71,077,206.79 Total v $257,981,439.57 A Democratic House of Representatives voted the appropriations for the six fiscal years beginning with 1877 and ending with 1882. Your correspondent lias tabulated the official figures, showing the expenditures during those six years, and comparing' them to a similar statement covering the six preceding yearn for which the appropriations wore voted by a Republican House of Representatives. This comparison has never been made before, and the results will be found interesting and suggestive, and will be found worthy the serious consideration of the people-during the Congressional campaign throughout the country. For convenience and brevity the two periods of six years will be called the Republican period and the Democratic period. In the first place, the comparison shows that, while the expenditures during the Republican period were $1,680,257,459.59, they were only $1,528,909,504.20 during the Democratic period—a difference of $151,347,955.39. That is to say, the average annual expenditures during the Democratic period were $25,224,662 56 less than during the Republican period. The extravagance of Republican Congresses as compared to the management of Democratic Congresses is even more clearly indicated by a comparison of the details of expenditures. - The civil and miscellaneous expenditures, which inc’ude the salaries of the civil list and all such expenditures as those provided for in the Sundry Civil bill and private bills, were $424,951,508.53 during the Republican period and $355,377,500.31 during the Democratic period—a difference of $69,574,008.22, or an annual average of sll,595,668.03. T'Uis is a remarkable contrast, the significance of which no one at all acquainted with public affairs can fail to understand. The War Department expenditures during the Republican period were $239,000,7.89.17, and during the Democratic period, $231,816,415.44, a difference of $7,184,373.73 in favor of the Democrats in spite of the increased, expenditures in recent years for internal improvements. One of the most significant contrasts was that noted in the expenditures in tho Navy Department, which were $135,600,617.50 during the Republican period, as compared to $91,706,066.23 during the Democratic period—-a difference of $43,894,551.27, or an annual average of $7,315,758.54! The Indian expenditures were $49,484,108.22 during the Republican period, and $37,308,762.16 during the Democratic period, a difference of $6,175,346.06. It thus appears that, exclusive of the pension expenditures and the interest on the public debt, the excess of expenditures made during the Democratic period was as follows: Excess. Civil and miscellaneous $ 69,.971,008.32 War Department. ,r 7,184,373.73 Navy Department...... 43,8)1,651.27 Indians 6,175,340.06 Total $126,8.-8,479.08 A comparison of the two periods in regard to the amount of levenue received by the Government and the surplus revenue gives a very striking result. The revenue during the Republican period was $1,956,129,862.85, and during the Democratic period $1,818.425,803.61, or, in other words, the receipts of the Government during tho former period were $57,704,039.24 larger than during the latter. But despite the fact tli it the Republicans had the advantage of the larger revenue the Democrats during the pei-iod they had control of the House secured to the Government by their economy a much larger snrp’us revenue. The surplus during the Republican period was only $275,802,403.26, as compared to $36),516,299.41 during the Democratic period, or a difference of $93,053,890.15 in favor of the latter, although the receipts during

that time were nearly $58,000,000 less than during the Republican period. In other words, if the revenues had been as large during the Democratic period ns during the Republican, the surplus revenue would have amounted' to over $427,000,000, or $151,000,000 in excess of the surplus during the Republican period. Such is the story told by the official figures of the Treasury Department.