Page:Statesman's Year-Book 1871.djvu/436

 400 SPAIN.

two millions and a half sterling. In all the budgets for years past, the expenditure was made to balance the revenue. The last, laid before the Cortes Constituyentes on October 29, 1869, acknowledged an actual deficiency of 5,400,000/., but the. Minister of Finance stated at the same time that there would be a ' levelling of the es- timates,' or equality of revenue and expenditure, in the year 1870. Proposing to change the term of the financial year from July— June to January— December, the minister submitted the following estimates for the latter period, namely January 1, to December 31, 1870: —

Revenue. . . 656,824,499 . 26,272,979 Expenditure. . . 656,966,085 . 26,278,643

Deficit. . 141,586 . 5,664

In submitting these budget estimates for 1870, the Minister of Finance declared that he was unable to place entire reliance upon them, seeing the unsettled political state of the country.

Among the most important sources of national revenue, and the one least liable to fluctuation on account of political causes, is that derived from state property, the total of which was estimated at 4,257,376/. in the budget of 1868-69, and at very nearly the same amount in that for the year 1870. The total was made up as follows in the estimates of 1868-69 : —

£

Profits from State mines 390,455

Arrears of payment by former purchasers of National

property, to be made good in stock of the debt. . 400

Proceeds of State property, 28,030

Sale and administration of Church property by the State 269,642

Proceeds of sequestrated property 5,000

Various State dues. 66,094

Proceeds of tax on salaries of Registrars of property. 26,700

Arrears connected with State property to the end of 1849 200

Sales of National property effected previous to May 1,

1855, obligations which may be made good in currency 1,734

Ready money : —

Instalments due in seoond half-year of 1868, and first half-year of 1869 ; with discount on those proceed- ing from sales and redemptions anterior to Oct. 2,

1858 358,426

Instalments due in second half-year 1868, and first half-year of 1869, with discount on those proceeding from sales and exemptions subsequent to Oct. 2,

1858 3,089,882

Extraordinary receipts on account of sales and redemp- tions 25,310

4,257,376