228 



COSTA EICA. 



savagery, 1,200 negroes, and about 600 Chi- 

 nese. 



The President of the Republic was Don 

 Vicente Herrera, until September, 1877, when 

 he was superseded by General Toinfis Guardia, 

 until that time Vice-President. 



The Minister of the Interior was Don Satur- 

 nino Lizano ; the Minister of Foreign Affairs, 

 Justice, Public Instruction, and Public "Wor- 

 ship, Don Rafael Machado ; and the Minister 

 of Finance, Don Braulio Morales. The new 

 ministry, formed on the accession of General 

 Guardia to the presidency, was composed of 

 Dr. Castro, Don Salvador Lara, and Don 

 Bruno Carranza ; but of the respective de- 

 partments to which they were appointed no 

 official returns had been received up to Decem- 

 ber 31, 1877. 



The amounts and various branches of the 

 national revenue and expenditure, for the 

 fiscal year ending April 30, 1877, were as fol- 

 lows: 



REVENCE. 



National Bank $191 ,422 



Custom-house of Puntarenas 731,540 



Government monopolies : 



Brandy $740,412 



Tobacco 376,153 



Powder 1,169 1,117,734 



National property : 



Government hinds 36.657 



Government printing-office 3.391 



National Institute 8,501 



Post-office 25.963 



Telegraph... 6,770 



Railway 98,408 



Pnblicworks 32,496 187,186 



Taxes, etc. : 



Subsidies , 17,450 



Stamp duty 80,508 



Judicial fees 17,063 



Mortgage fees 17,065 



Spiritlicense 22,038 104.124 



Sundry receipts 47.426 



Total $2,379,432 



EXPENDITURE. 



Ministry of the Interior $175,787 



Finance and Commerce 131,237 



Justice 72,229 



War and the Navy 462.996 



Public Works (railway, $637.906) 725.264 



Public Instruction 120,864 



Public Worship 20,617 



Foreign Affairs 63.220 



Benevolent institutions 8,598 



Government monopolies 283,105 



National credit 232.412 



Sundry outlays 187,911 



Total... $2,484,240 



By comparing the two foregoing tables, it 

 will be observed that there was a deficit of 

 $104,808 ; and that the cost of collecting the 

 taxes on the Government monopolies amounted 

 to nearly one-third of the entire proceeds 

 thereof. 



The total amount of the foreign debt, in 

 1877, was 1,011,611 ; and that of the aggre- 

 gate liabilities of the Government, $7,134,061,* 

 including : bills of exchange, $284,575 ; Treas- 

 ury notes, not bearing interest, $47,975 ; con- 

 solidation of sundry funds, $164, 260 ; indebt- 

 edment to Pern, $149,500 ; indebtedment to 



According to official returns, April 30, 1877. 



the cities of San Jose" and Heredia, $38,547 ; 

 and sundries, $30,354. 



The total assets of the state at the same 

 period were set down at $9,509,544, as follows : 

 real estate, including railway property, $8,002,- 

 154 ; tobacco, brandy, etc., in warehouse, 

 $105,496 ; capital of the National Bank, 

 $1,181,074; municipal funds, $8,951; other 

 funds, $211,869. 



It would appear that the commissioners for 

 the 7 per cent, loan maintained agents in 

 Costa Rica during the early months of 1877 ; 

 but they were not able to effect any arrange- 

 ment with the Government. 



The committee of holders of the 6 per cent, 

 loau have applied themselves, of late, to the 

 promotion of a union among the bondholders 

 of both loans, so as to obtain joint communi- 

 cation and joint action in negotiations with 

 the Costa Rica Government. 



Information which was obtained by the 

 6 per cent, committee confirms the represen- 

 tations previously made, as to the value of 

 the resources of the country, and their prob- 

 able productiveness, if the railway, now only 

 partially finished, were completed. Unfortu- 

 nately, it would seem that the means requisite 

 for completing the railway could only be ob- 

 tained by drawing in advance on the future 

 development of the country dependent on the 

 completion of the line, and not from indepen- 

 dent sources. 



The total value of the exports for the year 

 ending April 30, 1877, was $5,307,406, some 

 $300,000 being the value of those through the 

 Atlantic port of Limon, and the remainder 

 through that of Puntarenas, on the Pacific. 

 The chief staples shipped throught the latter 

 port were coffee, 24,300,000 lbs.,of the value of 

 $4,859,154; hides, $64,533 ; India-rubber, $36,- 

 230 ; and flour, $15,421. 



The shipping movements at the two ports 

 above named were as. follows in 1876: 



