Page:Statesman's Year-Book 1871.djvu/184

 I48 GERMANY SAXONY.

The details of the annual expenditure of the period 1864—66 were : —

Civil list of the King and Queen, dotation of the Thaler

princes, and repair of royal residences. . 863,845

Interest on public debt ...... 2,834,000

Ministry of Justice 384,703

,, of Interior 850,495

„ of Finances ...... 474,395

of War 2,175,096

„ of Public Instruction and Ecclesiast. Affairs 390,833

,, of Foreign Affairs ..... 94,445

Contribution to the expenses of the German Diet. 35,000

Pensions 590,336

Public works 3,339,461

Fund of reserve 323,743

Total annual expenditure. .12,356,352 or £1,853,452.

The budget for the financial year 1868-69 was based on esti- mates of revenue of 13,371,057 thaler, or 2,005,659/., and of expenditure to the same amount. Included in the latter was the sum of l r 545,490 thaler, or 231,824/., forming the contribution of Saxony to the expenditure of the North German Confederation.

For the last few years there has been a gradually increasing surplus of income over expenditure, which is collected in a 'fund of reserve,' and made use of for the reduction of the public debt. A great part of this surplus was derived from the railway lines of the country, nearly all of which are State property, yielding a revenue of from 1,500,000 to 1,800,000 thaler per annum.

The public debt amounted, at the end of 1869, to 95,264,062 thaler, or 14,289,609/., the liabilities being made up as follows : —

Old debt ....

3% 'Obligations,' created in 1830

4% 'Kassen-Scheine' of 1847.

4% ditto of 1852-66

3% ditto of 1855.

Shares of the Saxon-Silesian Railway. . . 3,335,000

5% 'Obligations,' created in 1867. . . .12,000,000

4% • Kassenscheine,' created in 1869. . .20,000.000"

Thaler

2,281

5,204,075

7,789,000

42,648,400

4,285,300

Total. . . 95,264,062 £14,289,609

The debt was incurred almost entirely for the establishment and purchase of a network of railways and telegraphs, and the promotion of other works of public utility.