Rensselaer Republican, Volume 17, Number 31, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 9 April 1885 — WASHINGTON. [ARTICLE]

WASHINGTON.

The decrease in the public debt for March wsw $483,000. Secretary Manning has changed the form of the Tieasurer’s monthly statement. By the old method of tabulation the surplus in the vault is $153,000,000; by the new form it appears as $21,500,000. The sum of $100,000,000 has been reserved for the redemp L tion of greenbacks, and small change to the amount of $31,500,000 is stated by itself. In the new form of debt statement the Pacific Railroad bonds are added to the bonded indebtedness. Within three months the Treasury has lost $16,000,000 in .gold and gained $7,000,000 in silver. Following is a recapitulation of the debt statement for last month, according to the new form: Interest bearing debt— Bonds at 4‘y per cent $250,000,000 Bonds at 4 per cent 737.710,000 Bonds at 3 per cent......... 194,190,500 Refunding certificates at 4 per cent. 248,200 Navy pension fund at 3 per cent . . —14,000,000 Pacific Railroad bonds at 6 per cent 64,023,512 Principal,g- .$1,260,073,112 Interest.- 11,957,512 ’ Total... •• ■ $1,272,730,614 Debt on winch interest has teased sine? maturity Principal.. .. $4,951,505 Interest.; 242,310 Total $5,193,815 Debt bearing no interest# Old demand and legal-tender notes. $346,739,081 Certificates of deposit 20.212,000 Gohta certi ft cates;.. .7115,647,540 Silver certificates 112,500,226 Fractional currency (less $8,375,934, estimated as lost or destroyed)... 6,967,099 Principal 608,063,946 Total debt— Principa151,873,788,563 Interest. 12,199,812 Total. $1,885,988,376 Less casn items available for reduction of 5= ~ the debt $261,150,165 Less reserve held for redemption of U. S. notes 100,000,000 Total debt less available cash Items.... 1,524,838,210 Net cash In the Treasury 22,259.023 Debt less cash in Treasury April 1, 1885 1,502,579.184 Debt less cash in Treasury March 1, 1885 1,502,489,928 Increase of debt during the month as shown fey this statement 89,256 Cash :u the Treasury—Available ior reduction of the debt— Gold held for goldcer-—-tificates actually ——-——— ; —- outstanding;.. $115,647,540 Silver held tor silver certificates actually outstanding 112,500,220 U. S. notes held for certificates of de- , posit actually outstanding. 3 . 26,210,000 Cash held for matured * ; debt and interest unpaid. 6,788,921 ..» ■ ■'■ ■ Fractional currency.. 3,478 r -• Total available for reduction of debt ..$ 201,150,165 Reserve fund held for redemption of U. S. notes, act July 12, 1882.. 100,000,000 Unavailable for reduction of the debt— Fractional silver coin... $30,632,326 Minor coin...-. 876,051 — 31,508,377 Cash held for certificates issued but not 0ut5tanding............ . 69,556.605 Net cash balance on hand 22,259,025 Total cash in the Treasury as shown by Treasurer's general account $484,474,174 An important branch of the Pension Office at Washington has grown up within the last year almost unnoticed. It was discovered two years ago that 204,000 cusps were pending before the office aw li ting responses from claimants who had been called upon to furnish additional evidence, and who were unable to comply with the demand owing to the difficulty of finding the comrades or commanders whose testimony was necessary to support their claims. A year ago a special division was created, called the “Army and Navy Survivors’ Branch. ” Since that time a record of 500,000 names and addresses has been prepared, and it is proposed to obtain if possible a complete record of 1,350,000 ex-soldiers... .It is announced that President Cleveland will soon turn his attention to Southern postoffices, and that he will within a few weeks remove most of the Virginia Postmasters, most of whom owe their nominations to Mahone.