The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1881-11-06
Thn Treaty With EnMnii.

wlch Islands has been superseded by the
so-called Reciprocity Treaty." and any
discussion of the former brings us neces,ar-
lily to a consideration of the latter. The
nature and extent of the commercial
transactions between this country and the
Islands since the adoption of the treaty can
be ascertaned by any one who will take
the trouble to inquire at the custom house
of San Francisco. And there we learn
that during the last year about SO,0OO,OOO
pounds 10000 tons) of sugar were received
at this port from the Hawaiian islands. The
duty upon this sugar-one years crop
would, if collected, have amounted to ST.
50O,UO. There was also received during
the same period, and from the same place,
a large quantity of rice duty free. All the
rice produced on those islands is produced
by the Chinese, and those having relations
with the islands know that every pound of
rice consumed by the Chinese on the islands
is imported from China. In other words,
those frugal people export all the rice they
grow on the Hawaiian Islands, be-
cause under the treaty it enters here
duty free, and they import from
China all the rice they eat because the duty
imposed by the Hawaiian government upon
rice is very small and in this way the
Heather Chinee" beats this government
out of the duty upon all the rice grown upon
the islands. How much of the Chinese rice
gets mixed up with the Sandwich Island rice
and is shipped here duty free we have no
means of knowing, but the temptation to
commit fraud in this direction is very great,
and those engaged in business are not over
scrupulous. Therefore, the treaty, in so
far as it relates to the rice product of the
islands, is wholly and exclusively III the in
terest Of the Chinese. For years the people
of California-indeed, tire whole Pacific
coast-were clamorous for some sort OF d
reciprocity treaty with these islands, until
, finally the government conceded this one to
them. 1t was for seven years, and now has
about three to run. Our government can
terminate it sooner by giving one year $
notice gifts intention or purpose to do so.
In asking for the treaty the people of the
Pacific coast must have expected benefits
from it; perhaps they thought it would
bring down the price of sugar here, as il
| ought to have done, seeing that the duty OF
y cents a pound upon crude sugar equal
to cents pound on retined) has been re-
mitted by our government; but instead of
this expected reduction we now find that
VIZ P'ANN va ohRul u'Oll lloNuuel
higher than il was before the treaty, or,
perhaps, than it would be without the
treaty. The $2,500,000 year duty upon
Sandwich Island sugar, which the govern
ment surrendered at our bidding, does not
come TO the people OF the Pacific coast.
Who then is benefited by this so-called re-
ciprocity treaty? The answer is, the sugar
retineries (the two rciinerics here represent
but one INTEREST," and the railroad company
as we shall presently show. The price OF
sugar in New York governs the price here ;
! II r. the same in San Francisco us in New
York, plus the freight hither. In other
words, If refined sugar is selling in New
York for 10 cents pound and the freight
nom New York to San Francisco be cent
pound, then the price here would be IL
cents a pound. 1t should be remembered
always in this connection, that about 20 per
cent. of the sugar consumed in the United
states is Imported, and that .all imported
sugar Is dutiable, except what is
produced on the Sandwich Islands.
cent pound, freight, for bringing
sugar from New York to California, but
this year they ask double this amount, or
$40 per ton, which Is simply prohibitory
charge, and doubtless was so intended. 1t
is understood that the retiner here pays the
railroad $40 ton upon $500 tons Of freight,
which II does not carry, from New York to
San Francisco. The redner by paving this
subsidy of 100000 per annum to the rail
road to keep the eastern sugars out of this
market, is thereby enabled to charge, and
does charge, cents per pound over the
New York price for all the sugar consume
upon this coast; and as the Hawaiian Island
produce 50 100000 pounds of crude sugar
equal to i0,0O0,0O pounds of rcfined-it will
be seen that the people of this coast arc
made to pay the trifle of $500, 900 per annum
for the sugar they consume than the same
quantity of dutiable sugar can be bought
for in New York, Boston or Philadelphia.
The gross value Of the Hawaiian sugar
crop Of s0y000OJ pounds, ut 5 cents
PVr pounu, Sc 900 roc