837.51/597
The Representative on Special Mission in Cuba (Crowder) to the Secretary of State
[Received September 30.]
Dear Mr. Secretary: I beg to transmit herewith marked exhibit “A” statements of monthly revenues of the Cuban Treasury for the months of May, June, July, August, and from the 1st to 22nd of September inclusive; distinguishing between Custom House receipts and Internal Revenue receipts. The receipts corresponding to the month of May should be disregarded in computing a dependable average for the current fiscal year, for the reason that during that month there were many clearances in the Custom House of goods imported in prior months, which because of dock congestion, had not been cleared through the Custom House. Such conditions ceased, however, with the month of May, and the receipts corresponding to the succeeding months represent the normal flow of revenues into the Treasury.
Will this normal or average flow which is not very far from $5,400,000 per month, increase or diminish in the succeeding months of the current fiscal year? If the average for succeeding months is not higher, then we shall know that unless there is an effective revision upward of the Internal Revenue laws, the receipts for the current fiscal year will scarcely exceed the expenditures and there will be no budgetary surplus with which to meet an addition to the public [Page 733] debt, and to liquidate floating indebtedness. Zayas’ refusal thus far to reduce the budget below $65,000,000 throws the entire burden of establishing the necessary budgetary surplus upon the pending revision of the Internal Revenue laws, unless there should be an unexpected rise during the ensuing months of the present fiscal year of the Revenue receipts, Custom House and Internal.
President Zayas understands that this is the case, but is making little or no progress with the task of revising upward the Internal Revenue laws of the Republic.
Very respectfully,