change thereby secured, the transaction will not have any unfavorable effect on the rate of exchange generally, and by so considerably diminishing the demand, will enable the United States to obtain what is still wanted, at a reasonable rate; and because, in his opinion, the price obtained for the Bank shares, is more than could be obtained were they thrown in the market for sale, and more than their intrinsic value. Whereupon, it was Resolved, by the Board, "That the Secretary of the Treasury be authorized to sell the shares of the stock of the Bank of the United States belonging to the United States, and that the proceeds thereof be applied to the payment of the capital or principal of any part of the debt of the United States, which had become due to the Bank of the United States, before, or during the course. of the year 1796, and which remains still unpaid, in conformity to the provisions of the act entitled "An act making provision for the payment of certain debts of the United States," passed on the 31st day of May, 1796. (Signed) JAMES MADISON, Secretary of State. Attest: EDWARD JONES, Secretary of the Board of REPORT ON THE FINANCES. OCTOBER, 1803. In obedience to the directions of the act, supplementary to the act, entitled "An act to establish the Treasury Department," the Secretary of the Treasury respectfully submits the following report and estimates. The annual nett proceeds of the duties on merchandise and tonnage, had, in former reports, been estimated at nine millions five hundred thousand dollars. That estimated revenue, predicated on the importations of the years immediately preceding the late European war, and on the ascertained ratio of increase of the population of the United States, appears, from the experience of the two last years, to have been underrated. The nett revenue arising from that source, which accrued during the year 1802, exceeds ten millions one hundred thousand dollars. The revenue which has accrued during the two first quarters of the present year, appears, from the best estimate that can now be formed, to have been only fifty thousand dollars less than that of the two corresponding quarters of the year 1802; and the receipts in the Treasury, on account of the same duties, during the year ending the 30th of September last, have exceeded ten millions six hundred thousand dollars. Those facts afford satisfactory evidence that the wealth of the United States increases in a still greater ratio than their population, and induce a belief that this branch of the public revenue may now be safely calculated at ten millions of dollars. From the statement (A,) it will appear, that the same revenue for the two last years of the late European war, (1800 and 1801,) calculated at the present rate of duties, averaged 11,600,000 dollars a year; but, although it might, with some degree of probability, be supposed that the renewal of hostilities will again produce a similar increase, no inference from that period is drawn in this report, in relation to the revenue of the ensuing years. The statement (B,) shows the several species of merchandise on which the duties on importations were collected, during the year 1802, the portion of that revenue which was derived from drawbacks, and that which arose from the extra duty on merchandise imported in foreign vessels. Although the sales of the public lands, during the year ending on the 30th day of September last, were affected by the situation of the western country, two hundred thousand acres have been sold during that period; and, as it appears by the statement (C,) that, independent of future sales, the sums already paid to the Receivers, together with those which, exclusively of interest, fall due during the three ensuing years, amount to 1,250,000 dollars, the annual revenue arising from the proceeds of those sales, cannot be estimated at less than four hundred thousand dollars. The extension of post roads, and the acceleration of the mail, whilst diffusing and increasing the benefits of the institution, have, as an object of revenue, rendered it less productive. The receipts from that source have amounted, during last year, to 27,000 dollars; but, as neither these, nor those arising from some other smaller incidental branches, are of sufficient importance to affect any general result, the whole existing revenue of the United States will be computed at only ten millions four hundred thousand dollars. The permanent annual expenses of government, which, under existing laws, must be defrayed out of that revenue, amount to nine millions eight hundred thousand dollars, to wit: 1st. The annual appropriation of 7,300,000 dollars, for the payment of the principal and interest of the debt; of which about three millions and a half are at present applicable to the discharge of the principal, and the residue to the payment of in terest 2d. The current expenses of government, which, according to the estimates for the year 1804, consist of the following items, viz: For the Civil Department, and all domestic expenses of a civil nature For expenses attending the intercourse with foreign. nations, including the permanent appropriation for Algiers, and all other expenses relative to the Barbary powers For the Military and Indian Departments And deducted from the permanent revenue of Leave a surplus revenue of six hundred thousand dollars applicable to other objects. 791,000 184,000 875,000 650,000 $600,000 The following extraordinary resources and demands, not being of a perma nent nature, are not included in that calculation, to wit: The specie in the Treasury, which, on the 30th day of September last, amounted to The arrears of the direct tax, estimated at The outstanding internal duties amounting to near, And the sum which will be repaid to the United States on account of advances heretofore made in England for the prosecution of claims, estimated at $7,300,000 Constituting an aggregate of more than six millions six hundred · 2,500,000 9,800,000 10,400,000 5,860,000 250,000 400,000 150,000 $6,660,000 - 82,664,000 100,000 The loan obtained from the State of Maryland for the City of Washington, amounting to And also to pay two millions of dollars on account of the purchase of Louisiana; being the same sum which was reserved for the purposes contemplated by the law of 4,964,000 the last session, appropriating that amount for the extraordinary expenses attending the intercourse with foreign nations. It appears by the estimate (D,) that during the year ending on Makes an actual difference in favor of the United States, of more than four millions four hundred thousand dollars during that year. The payments on account of the principal of the publle debt, from the 1st day of April, 1801, to the 30th day of September, 1803, have amounted, as appears by the estimate (E,) to - $9,924,004 The specie in the Treasury, on the 1st day of April, 1801, amounted to And on the 30th day of September, 1803, to 200,000 2,000,000 1,794,000 3,096,700 1,320,000 4,416700 Making an increase of 4,066,000 Those two items constitute an aggregate of 13,990,004 From which, deducting the extraordinary resource arising from the sales of the bank shares, which produced 1,287,600 Leaves for the amount of the true difference 12,702,404 In favor of the United States, for that period of two years and a halt, a sum of twelve millions seven hundred thousand dollars. From that view of the present situation of the financial concerns of the United States, it seems that the only question which requires consideration, is, whether any additional revenues are wanted in order to provide for the new debt, which, if Congress shall pass the laws necessary to carry the treaty with France into effect, will result from the purchase of Louisiana. The sum which the United States may have to pay by virtue of that treaty, amounts to fifteen millions of dollars, and consists of two items: 1st, 11,250,000 dollars payable to the government of France, or to its assignees, in a stock bearing an interest of six per cent., payable in Europe, and the principal of which will be discharged at the Treasury of the United States, in four instalments, the first of which shall commence in the year 1818. 2dly, A sum which cannot exceed, but may fall short of, 3,750,000 dollars, payable in specie at the Treasury of the United States, during the course of the ensuing year, to American citizens having claims of a certain description on the government of France. It has already been stated that two millions of dollars may be paid from the specie now in the Treasury, on account of the last item; and the whole amount of the new debt which may eventually be created, cannot, therefore, exceed thirteen millions of dollars, the annual interest of which is equal to 780,000 dollars; but, on account of commissions and variations of exchange, will be estimated at eight hundred thousand dollars. -The existing surplus revenue of the United States will, as has been stated, be sufficient to discharge six hundred thousand dollars of that sum; and it is expected that the nett revenue collected at New Orleans will be equal to the remaining two hundred thousand dollars. That opinion rests on the supposition that Congress shall place that port on the same footing as those of the United States, so that the same duties shall be collected there, on the importation of foreign merchandise, as are now, by law, levied in the United States, and that no duties shall be collected, either on the exportation of produce or merchandise, from New Orleans to any other place; nor on any articles imported in the United States from the ceded territories, or into those territories, from the United States. The statements F, G, H, exhibit the annual exports and imports of the United States, to and from Florida and Louisiana, for the years 1799 to 1802; and the statement (G,) particularly shows, that the exportations from the Atlantic States to those colonies, of articles, not of the growth, produce, or manufacture of the United States, amounted for the three years, 1799, 1800, and 1801, to 6,622,189 dollars, making an average of more than two millions two hundred thousand dollars of foreign articles liable to pay duty, annually imported into Florida and Louisiana from the United States alone. It is ascertained that the exportations from the United States to Florida. are so trifling, that, that statement may be considered as applying solely to New Orleans; and it is also known, that almost the whole of those importations were consumed within that colony; and that, during the war, the supplies from the United States constituted by far the greater part of its imports. From thence it results, that the annual importations into the ceded territory, of articles destined for the consumption of its own inhabitants, and which will, under the revenue laws of the United States, be liable to pay. duty, may safely be estimated at two millions five hundred thousand dollars; an amount which, at the present rate of duties, will yield a revenue of about 350,000 dollars. From that revenue must be deducted 150,000 dollars, for the following items, viz: 1st. The amount of duties on a quantity of sugar and indigo, equal to that which shall be imported from New Orleans to the United States, as those articles, being imported free from duty, will diminish by so much the revenue now collected in the seaports of the United States. The whole amount of sugar exported from New Orleans is less than 4,000,000 of pounds, and that of indigo is stated at about 30,000 pounds. Supposing, (which, on account of that exemption, is not improbable,) that the whole of those articles should hereafter be exported to the United States, the loss to the revenue will be about 100,000 dollars. 2d. No increase of expense in the military establishment of the United States is contemplated on account of the acquisition of territory; but the expenses of the civil administration of the province, and those incident to the intercourse with the Indians, are estimated at 50,000 dollars: leaving for the nett revenue derived from the province, and applicable to the payment of the interest of the new debt, 200,000 dollars, as above stated. The only provisions, which, if that view of the subject be correct, appear necessary, and are |
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