

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. (FINANCES.) 



681 



between, cod is preserved by the New England 

 fishermen, and by the fishermen of New Bruns- 

 wick and Nova Scotia, and is liked best by the 

 American consumers. For these new concessions 

 Newfoundland agrees to admit certain Amer- 

 ican foodstuffs and other articles at the same 

 fixed rates of duty that are imposed on Canadian 

 products of the same kinds, and if the duties are 

 made lower for Canada or any other country the 

 United States while the convention remains in 

 force also will have the benefit of the reduction. 



An American, Capt. A. A. Rosehill, laid claim 

 to Marcus Island, whence a Japanese colony 

 ships guano, dried fish, stuffed birds, and feathers. 

 His claim to the island being disputed, he fitted 

 out an expendition at Honolulu for the purpose 

 of taking forcible possession of the guano depos- 

 its there. The Japanese minister notified the 

 Government at Washington that Japan claims 

 the island as one of the Bonin group, in which 

 it was officially included in 1898. Japan sent a 

 cruiser with a diplomatic official to defend her 

 claim, and this official bore a message from 

 Washington to Capt. Rosehill, warning him to 

 offer no forcible opposition. The American 

 claimant landed on the island in 1889, and find- 

 ing it uninhabited, raised the American flag, and 

 put up a monument where he deposited a record 

 of his claim to the island. In 1901 he filed a 

 bond at Washington such as is required to per- 

 fect a legal claim to a guano island under Amer- 

 ican protection. Meanwhile Japanese had come, 

 and finding the island unoccupied had shipped 

 away guano, and in 1896 formed a permanent set- 

 tlement of about 20 souls. Capt. Rosehill arrived 

 on July 30, but sailed away again on receiving the 

 message from the Japanese officer. The Japanese 

 have long known the island, and since 1879 their 

 fishermen have visited it. The American discov- 

 erer filed a claim at Washington against the 

 Japanese Government for possession of the island 

 and indemnification for the guano taken away. 



Finances. The receipts of the Government for 

 the fiscal year ended June 30, 1902, exceeded the 

 expenditures by $91,287,375. The excess for the 

 preceding year was $77,717,984. There was a net 

 decrease in the revenues of about $15,000,000, the 

 principal items of change being a decrease of $35,- 

 000,000 on account of internal revenue, due to the 

 repeal of war-taxes, and an increase of nearly 

 $16,000,000 for customs. Another increase was 

 more than $10,000,000 from postal revenues. 



There was a net decrease of expenditures of 

 $38,776,495, the chief items of decrease being 

 $2,300,000 for refunding excess of customs deposits, 

 $2,500,000 for deficiency in postal revenues, $4,900,- 

 000 for the twelfth census, $1,800,000 for public 

 buildings, $4,600,000 for improving rivers and har- 

 bors, $16,500,000 for the quartermaster's depart- 

 ment, and $6,300,000 for the subsistence depart- 

 ment of the army. There was a decrease in the 

 annual interest on the public debt of $3,234,934. 



The principal items of increased expenditure 

 were as follow : Rebate of tax on tobacco, $3,000,- 

 000 ; refunding to States expenses incurred in rais- 

 ing volunteers, $1,000,000; increase of the navy, 

 $4,600,000 ; Bureau of Equipment of the naval es- 

 tablishment, $1,000,000; general account of ad- 

 vances Navy Department, $2,000.000. 



Of the excess of revenues for the year, $70,410,- 

 were expended in the purchase of bonds and 

 other securities applied to the sinking-fund. With 

 the exception of the two years 1880 and 1881, 

 this is the largest expenditure on account of the 

 sinking-fund since it was established in 1869. The 

 remium paid on bonds purchased for the sinking- 

 id amounted to $14,339,000. 



VUI] 



8 



Detailed receipts and expenditures for 1902, 

 compared with those for 1901, are as follows: 



RECEIPTS. 



EXPENDITURES. 



