New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1888-12-14
RESTRICTIONS PROBABLE.
A RESULT OF INVESTIGATING TRUSTS.
THE SENATE COMMITTEE on GENERAL LAWS
CLOSES ITS SESSION.

CLOSES ITS SESSION.
The State Senate Committee investigating trusts
held its final sitting in New-York yesterday II any
future meetings are held they will be in Albany.
Eleven witnesses were examined during the day, ana
their testimony related entirely TO the effect Of the
McAvoy bill regulating grain elevator charges. and 10
the Sugar Trust The first witness was Henry :
Henry, West India commission merchant who deals
in raw sugar. lie testified that the market for tha'
commodity was now almost entirely restricted to the
rehners in the Trust and their brokers. It was not the
public, he said, but the commission merchants ana
brokers who werc the chief sufferers by the Trust.
Adam Il. Gray, engaged in the grain lghtcrase
business in this city, thought that the cost Of trans
porting grain. from canaboat freight car and put
ting It aboard steamer somewhat less since the
passage OF the McAvoy bill. He had brought
friendly suit TO test the law and hoped he would De
defeated He paid all expenses out Of his own
pocket and no one in collision with him. Albert
J. Wheeler Of Buffalo. had been connected with the
elevator business for twenty five years. He said that
the bill was practically dead letter, for. although II
took off eighth from the cost of elevating' r.
ceivng ard storing a boat load Of grain, they had TO
get back that eighth and put It somewhere They did
it by charging for short terms Of storage which had
formerly been free. At a charge Of 5-s Of cent It
would be impossible TO do business. The railroad
elevators might the railroads carried grain all
the way through The forty elevators owned in
Buffalo were in combination and charged the same
rates. but could not order the closing Of an elevator
Idle elevators and storage houses received Small
share Of the profits of the Others.
Regarding the effect OF the bill the canal-for-
wardlng business Willis c. Jackus testified that re-
ceivers Obliged TO accept from the elevator NEIL
receipt conditional upon their promise 10 return the
3-s Of cent taken from the old rates. Charles Glib
son. stephen T. Sherman and George Sandrock, grain
commission merchants Of Buffalo, and Frank Beadle
and II. Morse large canal-boa owners, confirmed the
testimony Of the previous witnesses their respective
sides Of the question The commission men were
confident that the McAvoy bill discouraged the In
vestment Of capital in elevators because If legis
lation could FIX their charges at 80 IT might fix them
at 3-s. They thought the added security given to
warehouse receipts by the combined responsibility Of
the associated elevator and warehouse owners made
these securities far more readily negotiable The
boat owners were agreed that the bill had been Of no
real benefit and would not be except, perhaps, in
times Of big crops and close competition with the rail-
roads
ALEXANDER T. ORR'S TESTIMONY.
The first witness examined at the afternoon session
was Alexander +. Orr, president Of the Produce
Exchange He said he was part owner IN several
elevators and knew that elevators could not be
operated under the terms Of the BILL except at
loss A conference was therefore held between tho
elevator men, the steamship and the commission
merchants. The csnal-boatmen were not called into
consultation. a committee Of the Produce Exchange
took the matter in charge and made an arrangement
subsequently adopted by the Exchange, reducing the
charges for weighing loading and elcvating canal
boat load of 5000 bushels from $40 to Sis. The
trade Of the port been benefited by the reduction,
but McAvoy bill or McAvoy BILL he DID not believe
the merchants or New-Yorh would ever fail TO make
whatever concession in tow nal charges 1t might be
necessary to make in O .er to retain business
he saff 70 ruf q
rates in law similar to the McAvoy bill because Of
the fluctuations OF business. II warehouse was
hampered so that II could not conform 10 the practice
Of the Exchange. II might Just as well be out oi
existence, for its warehouse receipts would not be
recognized Mr. Orr said that during tho season
Of navigation canals have an important influence on
the rates charged by railroads to NewYork and other
cities and It IS 10 New-York's interest to keep the
canaLboatmen in a prosperous condition. Formerly
they paid IL for unloading their grain, but
II was in their bill Of lading. Now the charge haa
been taken off and transferred to others just a.
the charge for towing down the Hudson might DC
taken off.
Mr. Orr also considered IT one Of the strange re-
qulrcments Of the new law that steamships were
not 10 be charged for the work Of loading them with
grain At one Of his elevators special facilities had
been provided for loading vessels and the warehouse
cost II 100000. At cost Of 20 cents ton they
could load vessel with a cargo Of 10000 bushels iu
with general cargo at cost Of 40 cents ton
and the process would consume ten days time The
vessel loaded at his elevator might have reached
Liverpool before the other got her cargo aboard
vet under the law owners are debarred from getting
any reward for their expensive machinery and plant
MUCH ADDITIONAL TESTIMONY
John f. searles ir., secretary Of the sugar Re
nneres Company, was the last witness Of the DAY.
lie was accompanied by John T. Par sons the counsel
and treasurer Of the compeny by reason OF supu-
lation entered into by General Pryor with counsel
for the Trust when the North River Sugar Refinery
case was on trial, the witness only examined -
Colonel Bliss as 10 certain points necessary TO SUI
plement the evidence already given concerning the
Trust Mr Searles said that the Forest CITY sugar
Refining Company OF Portland Ne the 81 Louis
Sugar Refining Company, and the Planters and
Louisiana companies, which once euioned the Trust,
have become members Of IT. but no new rehneres
have Joined since March &. The Ieineres which have
stopped TO make repairs 10 machinery or from excess
of production during the dun season are; The DlcA
4 Never Company. the Moer sierck Company the
North River Refinery, and the DE Castro a Bonner
Refinery in New York and its vicinity and, outside
Of New-York the Boston Refinery, the Continental.
the Bay State the Forest City, the s. Louis and the
Oxenham making ten altogether. Six are now run
ming.
The stoppace has been made by the direction OF
rho local boards acting under the Committee Man
ufactures Of the Trust These several companies in
the Trust hold stockholders meetings, and the stock
IS voted by one Of the Board OF Trustees as repre-
sentative OF the Stockholders. Dividends have been
maid on the stock Of the Trust at The ratio oil per
cent for the last year. some OF the lndiNu'@i j."
Gneries were taken into the Trust at higher Naiua~
,fon than their actual cost. stock issued fOI
the North River Refinery TO the amount OF SoJa'VoO
when It's actual valuation was $4,000 Colonel
Bliss tried t. get evidence Of the same nature p
Mr. Parsons objected the ground that It was con
trary 10 the stipulation on which MI searies TOOK
the stand Colonel Ehss then asked the witness II
there were any additional facts he wished 10 give The
committed. and. upon MI Parsons rs SUGGESTION ne
stated that there had been any scarcity OF sugar
srvIng ont OF the operations OF the Trust, that they
Raj CARED large stock OF refined sugar, and taxing
an average Of the good and bad seasons for ten years
there had been no greater prpJ ufHate increase d