No. 442.
Mr. Foster
to Mr. Fish.
Mexico, June 11, 1875. (Received June 29.)
Sir: The annual report of the minister of finance, Hon. Francisco Mejia, for the year ending June 30, 1874, was recently published in two volumes, and contains a very complete and satisfactory exhibit of the finances of the republic.
The total receipts into the national treasury for the fiscal year are stated at $20,942,707.19, and the expenditure therefrom $20,910,193.05; and a balance is reported of $1,287,608.97 as remaining in the treasury. The principal item of revenue is from the maritime custom-houses, whose gross receipts amounted to $11,393,547. The receipts from stamp-duties were $2,252,394, but, as the stamp-tax has been revised and extended during the current year, it is expected that the revenue from this source may at least be doubled. The total revenue from internal tax on products, merchandise, real estate, and licenses is placed at $1,763,547. The receipts of the post-office service are reported as $523,583, and its expenditures at $490,087; showing that this department is self-sustaining. Among other items of receipts are noticed the following: From the mints, $367,056; lottery-tax, $171,048; sale of public lands, $34,375.
Among the items of expenditures are: For the federal Congress, $760,506; for the executive power, $44,894, of which $30,000 is for the salary of the President; for the federal judiciary, $271,079, of which $74,598 is for the supreme court, $40,163 for the circuit courts, and $156,317 for the district courts; for the department of foreign affairs, (state,) $190,376, of which $72,806 is for the diplomatic and consular service, $17,631 for the mixed commission at Washington, and.$25,754 for the investigation commission of the northern frontier; for the department of government, (interior,) $1,551,965; for the department of justice (attorney-general) and education, $751,402, of which $426,139 is in aid of national schools and colleges: for the department of public works $1,649,901, of which $174,504 is for telegraphs; $448,078 for roads and bridges, $676,200 for railroads, $33,981 for improvement of the ports, $36,617 for the drainage of the valley of Mexico, and $111,565 for expenses of the mints5 for the department of finance, $3,296,539; and for the department of war, $8,753,021; to which should be added, for the expenses of the federal district military guard, &c., (department of government,) [Page 938] $885,706; making a total of $9,638,727, or about one-half of the entire expenditures of the federal government. The total force of the national army may be estimated at about 23,000 officers and men. The total number on the pension-list, civil and military, is 2,409, and the annual amount of pensions is $1,479,249.
The foregoing statement of expenditures includes nothing for the public debt, upon which no interest is at present being paid. There are no official data upon which to fix accurately the public debt. The foreign debt is officially stated to have amounted in 1861 to $76,000,000; so that at present, with the increased and accumulated interest, it may safely be estimated to exceed $100,000,000. The adjusted domestic debt, was reported in 1873 to be $10,352,067.
I am, &c.,