REVENUES OF THE UNITED STATES. In modern nations taxation greatly overshadows all other sources of revenue. This is brought out in a detailed statement of the revenue the Cnited States for the 'kcal ing June 30, 1901, in which the sources of income are arranged, no far as by classes.
The foregoing statement reveals the multipli city of Government revenues. A considerable group is not classed, though some of the items are related to the foregoing groups. Thus, all the items relative to Pacific railroad indebtedness are akin to the industrial operations of the State, as the Government subsidized in one form or an other the construction of these roads. Perhaps another considerable item. profits arising from coinage operations, should lie placed in the same class. It is obvious that the statement here made is one of gross revenues, for otherwise the postal service, which in the year in question operated with a deficit of $4,954,762.21.could not figure in the table. In like manner the figures for receipts from taxation are aggregate returns without deduction of the costs of collecting the revenues. which. like the costs of the postal ser
vice, figure among the expenditures.
Eliminating the postal revenue, the Govern ment receipts were in round numbers 587.7 mil lions of dollars, of which enstoms duties and in ternal-revenue taxes produced 545.8 millions of dollars. or p2.7 per cent. of the total. These have been from the beginning the main depend ence of the Federal Government, but they have not always occupied the same relative place. The preceding table shows the aggregate net ordinary receipts of the Treasury, and those from ens toms and internal revenue for selected years.
Internal taxes had been out of vogue since the War of 1812, but during the Civil War they be came a more important!' source of revenue than customs duties. A like result followed the war with Spain, while in time of peace customs duties were the more important.