PENNSYLVANIA. 



609 



ly made I IK- lift debt $'..404,99<J.<57. Tin- re- 

 ceipts for tin- year ending Nov. '.',(>. IM'.I:!. \\eiv 



(fl:{,'J.V.'.7'J7.N!l. Ill reference to hi> estimates for 



thecoiiiin.tr year llic Treasurer say* : - The esti- 

 mate- an- coii-crval ive. Owing to tin- dcptvs- 

 sion in biiMiic-s for the last six months of the 

 li-eal \car just closed, which has so seriously 

 a fleeted the business of all corporations and 

 manufacturing companies, it is safe to assumes 

 that the revenues from these sources on capital 

 stock and gross receipts will he greatly dimin- 

 ished, ami if no revival in trade is soon experi- 

 enced the decrease will be still more pronounced 

 for the \ear is<)4." The receipts for 1893, he 

 says, are unprecedented in the history of the 

 Stale, and can not be taken into account in 

 making an estimate for the future, as the collec- 

 tions made through the Attorney-General's de- 

 partment, amounting to $1,310,000, will not be 

 repeated during the coining year. 



The aggregate amount of revenues that will 

 be paid into the treasury for the year ending 

 Nov. 30, 1894, is estimated at $11,805,500, and 

 the expenditures at $12,976,700. The personal- 

 property tax is 4 mills on the dollar. 



1 he accounts between the State and the city 

 of Philadelphia, arising out of the defalcation of 

 John Bardsley, late city treasurer, were settled 

 Nov. 15, in accordance with a decision of the Su- 

 preme Court. The Philadelphia authorities paid 

 into the State treasury $525,962.43 and $305,- 

 092.80 personal-property tax for 1890 and 1891 

 respectively. They also paid to the Common- 

 wealth for' the city of Philadelphia $85,690.82, 

 tax on loans for 1890, which the city had previ- 

 ously paid to Bardsley, but which he failed to 

 pay to the Commonwealth and for which the 

 Supreme Court held that the city was liable. 



Valuations. The schedule prepared for the 

 use of the Board of Revenue Commissioners 

 shows that in 1893 the personal property in the 

 State subject to taxation aggregated $607,320,- 

 458.83, the tax on which amounted to $2,429.- 

 281.83, Philadelphia being the largest county in 

 the State in wealth and population, naturally 

 heading the list, its personal property aggregat- 

 ing $299,391,627.50 and the tax $1,197,566.51. 



The annual report of the Department of In- 

 ternal Affairs for the fiscal year ending Nov. 30, 

 1893 gives the assessed valuation of real estate 

 in Pennsylvania for the year ending June 1, 

 1892, at $2,308,767,431, or $42,422,606 less than 

 for the year ending June 30, 1893. This is esti- 

 mated ns about 60 per cent, of the actual value. 

 It does not cover the property of those public 

 corporations whose real estate "is not taxed for 

 local purposes, these taxes being paid direct into 

 the State treasury, or include the valuation of 

 municipal corporations, school districts, and 

 property devoted to religious worship. 



A census statement shows that the valuation 

 of farms decreased from 1880 to 1890 by $53,- 

 449,177. The amount at the latter date was 

 $922,240,233. There has been a corresponding 

 decrease in the value of farm products in the 

 estimate made in 1890 with that made in 1880. 



Banks. The report of the Superintendent of 

 Banking for the fiscal year ending Nov. 30, 1893, 

 shows that there are 80 banks, H> savings institu- 

 tions, and 82 trust companies under supervision 

 of the banking department, an increase of 6 over 

 VOL. xxxiii. A 39 



tin- previous year. Three banks Farmers' Bank, 

 llarrislmrg. Slate Hunk of Lock Haven, and L !- 

 anon Trust and Safe-l>cposit Hank were forced 

 i" i 1 iseoiitinue business. Of t he *2 trust com panic- 

 reported, two have gone into liquidation : a num- 

 ber of private banks, which were not subject to 

 supervision under State laws, were swept out of 



existence by the panic. 



The report shows that the amount of capital 

 invested in the financial instiiul ions of the State 

 during the past year has increased $l,U4(j.-Yr> 

 compared with the previous year. 



The Order of Solon. The State Commis- 

 sioner of Insurance gave out in December the re- 

 sult of an official investigation of this order. He 

 has no legal authority or supervision over socie- 

 ties of this kind except under the act of April 6, 

 Ife93, authorizing him to examine their books 

 and papers. He said : 



The Order of Solon was incorporated in May, 1888, 

 and contracted with its members to pay them $25 per 

 week sick benefits, $500 in case of total* disability, and 

 $1,000, less any sums that may have been paid on ac- 

 count of sick benefits or disability claims, at the end 

 <>fsc\eii years, and all for the small sum of $2.50 per. 

 month, or $210 for the whole endowment period of 

 seven years. The management has not been strik- 

 ingly able, but it has been able enough to make 10,- 

 GOl persons residing in six different States mostly in 

 Pennsylvania believe they could get something for 

 nothing. That large number of presumably intelli- 

 gent persons have paid into this concern in four and 

 one half years the enormous sum of $585,244.52. The 

 outstanding contracts of the society, after deducting 

 probable lapses, show a future liability of $5,484,600, 

 which will begin to mature in less than sixteen 

 mouths. The net available assets of the society with 

 which these millions are to be paid amount to $144,- 

 549.06. The books and accounts have been loosely 

 kept, the finances have been grossly mismanaged, 

 and the whole atiair, when fully known, will form one 

 of tin; most interesting pages in the history of lite in- 

 surance in Pennsylvania. 



Education. The Superintendent's report for 

 the school year ending June 5, 1893, gives the 

 following statistics: School districts, 2,386; 

 schools, 24,012; graded schools, 12.304; male 

 teachers, 8.245; female teachers, 17,718; whole 

 number of teachers, 25,963 ; average salaries of 

 male teachers per month, $43.94 ; average salaries 

 of female teachers per month, $33.04 ; pupils, 

 994,407. Total cost of tuition, building, fuel, 

 and contingencies, $16,410,976.99. 



The report of the State normal schools gives 

 the whole number of students for the past year 

 as 5,918 : number graduated who intend to be- 

 come teachers, 931 ; total value of property, $2,- 

 626,103.93. The last Legislature enacted'a law 

 directing the Superintendent of Public Instruc- 

 tion to grant without examination permanent 

 State certificates to all applicants therefor who 

 are graduates of recognized literary or scientific 

 colleges legally entitled to confer degrees, and 

 have taught in the public schools for three full 

 annual terms. This raised a question as to what 

 constituted the legal power to confer degrees. 

 Graduates of several small colleges applied for 

 certificates. One college represented has six pu- 

 pils and two teachers the principal and his wife 

 and has conferred degrees. The question was 

 referred to the Attorney-General. 



Insane Asylums.' A joint committee ap- 

 pointed by the Legislature to investigate the con- 



