Prince Edward Island Revenue and Expenditure, 1864

From the 1866 Prince Edward Island Calendar:

Prince Edward Island Revenue and Expenditure, 1864

Comments

Chuck's picture
Chuck on October 21, 2010 - 03:39 Permalink

Incredible! By far, the majority of the taxation was impost duty (i.e. customs tariff), and almost all the expenditures are the kinds of thing I’d consider the proper role of government: roads, lighthouses, public lands and buildings, government and court offices. Not an economic development program or defined-benefit pension or sustainable energy initiative among them, though one does wonder about the money for the Royal Agricultural Society.

I note with some discouragement that the public debt was equal to a year’s revenue even then, but also that they recorded a surplus equal to nearly 13% of that debt, in a single year.

And they did this with a population of around 90,000.

Ashley Johnston's picture
Ashley Johnston on October 22, 2010 - 00:46 Permalink

Finally, something from 1864 worth restoring.