For miscellaneous expenditures, including public buildings,
light-houses, and collecting the revenue — 43,939,710.00

For expenditures on account of the District of Columbia — 3,407,049.62

For interest on the public debt — 54,578,378.48

For the sinking fund — 46,790,229.50

Total ordinary expenditures — 290,926,473.83

Leaving a surplus of — 57,603,396.09

As compared with the preceding fiscal year, there was a net decrease of over $21,000,000 in the amount of expenditures.  The aggregate receipts were less than those of the year previous by about $54,000,000.  The falling off in revenue from customs made up nearly $20,000,000 of this deficiency, and about $23,000,000 of the remainder was due to the diminished receipts from internal taxation.

The Secretary estimates the total receipts for the fiscal year which will end June 30, 1885, at $330,000,000 and the total expenditures at $290,620,201.16, in which sum are included the interest on the debt and the amount payable to the sinking fund.  This would leave a surplus for the entire year of about $39,000,000.

The value of exports from the United States to foreign countries during the year ending June 30, 1884, was as follows: 

Domestic merchandise — $724,964,852

Foreign merchandise — 15,548,757

Total merchandise — 740,513,609

Specie — 67,133,383

Total exports of merchandise and specie — 807,646,992

The cotton and cotton manufactures included in this statement were valued at $208,900,415; the breadstuffs at $162,544,715; the provisions at $114,416,547, and the mineral oils at $47,103,248.

During the same period the imports were as follows: 

Merchandise — $667,697,693

Gold and silver — 37,426,262

Total — 705,123,955

More than 63 per cent of the entire value of imported merchandise consisted of the following articles: 

Sugar and molasses — $103,884,274

Wool and woolen manufactures — 53,842,292

Silk and its manufactures — 49,949,128

Coffee — 49,686,705

Iron and steel and manufactures thereof — 41,464,599

Chemicals — 38,464,965

Flax, hemp, jute, and like substances, and manufactures thereof — 33,463,398

Cotton and manufactures of cotton — 30,454,476

Hides and skins other than fur skins — 22,350,906

I concur with the Secretary of the Treasury in recommending the immediate suspension of the coinage of silver dollars and of the issuance of silver certificates.  This is a matter to which in former communications I have more than once invoked the attention of the National Legislature.

It appears that annually for the past six years there have been coined, in Compliance with the requirements of the act of February 28, 1878, more than 27,000,000 silver dollars.