12 MARCH 1904, Page 3

The Westminster Gazette of Monday contained an interesting summary of

Budget prospects. The Estimates for 1903-4 put the revenue at £144,000,000, but as only £122,500,000 had been collected up to February 27th, the writer puts the total revenue at about £139,500,000. The Budget and Supplemen- tary Estimates for the year give the expenditure, when all deductions have been made, at 2147,500,000. We shall there- fore have to face a deficit of £8,000,000 on 1903-4. The normal expenditure for 1904-5, leaving Supplementary Esti- mates out of account, is put at 2143,500,000, and the estimated revenue at 2142,000,000. A realised deficit of £8,000,000 on the present, and an estimated deficit of 21,500,000 on the forthcoming year, is not the most cheerful prospect for a Chancellor of the Exchequer to face.