The national revenue—The revenue as organised by the Constitution, and its analysis—Indirect taxation—The customs the chief source of revenue—Direct taxation; its origin in the Argentine; its justification; its yield—Revenue of the industrial undertakings belonging to the State: railways, sewers, posts and telegraphs—The exploitation of the State lands.
Elasticity of the receipts, which follow the development and progress of the country—The accelerated increase of expenditure, and the resulting chronic deficit—Necessity of serious reforms.
II. The Public Debt[312]
Statistics of the public debt on the 1st January 1909—History of the public debt—The first loans.
The financial crisis—Consolidated loans—The Romero arrangement—Loan for the redemption of guarantees—The internal public debt—The total of the Argentine public debt, and its annual cost in dividends and redemption—The proportion of financial charges as compared to other budgetary expenses.
The burden of the public debt is heavy, but not unduly heavy in relation to the productive power of the country—The necessity of restraining further issues and of converting old debts—The efforts of the Argentine to improve her credit.
III. The Double Currency [330]
The persistence of the double currency—The history of paper money—The origins of the premium on gold, and its almost continual increase—The year 1890 and the depreciation of the currency—The causes of this depreciation; abuses in the issue of paper, caused by a bad financial and administrative policy.
Remedies suggested—Rosa’s law fixing the value of paper money and establishing a Caisse de Conversion—Opposition to this law—Its beneficent effect upon agriculture and stock-raising, which had especial need of a stable medium of exchange—Reserve fund created with a view to converting paper money; its vicissitudes in the past and its present constitution—The present monetary situation.
IV. The Caisse de Conversion [342]