The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1891-03-17
OUR SAN FRANCISCO LETTER.
Per o. :. ;. Alameda. san Francisco.
March :, 1891.
IRON our special correspondent9
Sugar Market and News.


Sugar Market and News.
NEw loRK, March 7th.-Cuban CEN
trifugal SO deg. ) ll-l6, granulated
$40.
The local sugar market is quiet and
without feature with the exception OF an
advance OF. one-half cent per pound for
white sugar, which now rules at 6lS
cents.
Hawaiian is still arriving at lively
rate and finds its way to the consumer
as fast as it can be put through the re-
finery.
Just before the close of the session OF
Congress, bill was passed which per-
mits reiners OF sorghum sugar TO with
draw spirits free of the internal revenue
tax Tor use in refining and to redistill the
same under proper Government regula-
tons. This will be great benefit to
the sorghum sugar men.
The Shipping Bills.
The Lower House OF Congress gave
the shipping bills, tonnage, etc, passed
by the Senate, about as cold q reception
as was accorded the Pacific Cable Bill,
and on the wind-up OF business they
were all defeated, with the exception of
d compromise measure known as the
Marine Postal Subsidy Bill L was
made part of the Postoffice Appropria-
ton Bill, and appropriates 81 $50, 900 for
10 - =.
American vessels
The defeat of these important meas
ures was foreshadowed in our last adj
vices and was largely due to the stub
bornness OF Congressman Clunie and
Geary, the Democratic members from
California, who persistently opposed the
measures, despite the urgent requests of
the leading merchants of this city and
the Democratic State Central Committee.
Had these gentlemen not been possessed
of the idea that the measures were I'M
democratic, the tonnage bills, granting
bounties to both steam and sailing YES
sells, would undoubtedly have been
passed.
When the Republicans saw that the
bills were doomed to defeat, they sue
ceeded in having them re-committed for
the purpose of arranging u bill more
satisfactory TO the Democrats. This
they succeeded in doing, and the result
was the Marine Postal Subsidy Bill, the
provisions of which are as follows:
The Postmaster-General is authorized
to contract, after due advertisement, with
the lowest responsible bidders for terms
not less than five nor more than
ten years, with American citizens, for
carrying mails on American steamships
between points of the United States and
such foreign ports, excluding Canada, as
in his Judgment will best promote the
postal and commercial interests OF the
| United States.
The compensation to be paid for mail
service is as follows: First class 81 per
mile; second class 50 per mile by short
est practicable route for each outward
voyage; third class 81 per mile; fourth
class two-thirds of dollar per mile for
the number of miles required by the
Post Office Department to be travelled on
each outward voyage.
The Postal Subsidy bill as above briefly
| outlined was signed by the President
and is now law. While it is far from
being what was desired and expected
| from Congress. it is step in the right
direction, and far better than nothing.
1t will give the Australian, Hawaiian
and Asiatic steamship lines chance for
their lines in the fight against the sub
| sidized Canadian trans-Pacitic steam
ship lines, and will probably result in
the improvement of the Panama service,
a semi-monthly service to Australia, the
extension of the Pacific Mail Company s
| lines down the west coast OF South
America and the establishment OF steam
connection with Tahiti and other isolated
Pacific ports.
The Pacific Gable Measure De-
feafed.
Since last advices to the ADVERTISER,
Congress has had more or less OF a
struggle with the Pacific Cable bill, and
at one time just before the session
reached its closing hours there were
bright prospects for the success OF the
measure The bill went through the
Senate al! right as an amendment to the
Diplomatic and Consular Service bill but
the Democrats in the House fought the
cable amendment holly from first to last,
and finally refused to accept it. A con-
ference was ordered with the Senate, and
as result the latter body was notified
that the House would not accept the
amendment. This action took place in
the last hours OF the session and as it
threatened to defeat the passage Of the
Diplomatic bill in this Congress, the
Senate was forced to recede from its
amendment and the bill was finally
passed with the cable clause stricken
out. As Congress was on the point of
adjourning, it was impossible to present
the cable measure as a separate bill and
it was defeated. 1t is generally believed
By the friends OF the bin that it would
nave Jared much better II it had been
brought up on Its own merits as some of
its strongest opponents strenuously OBJ
jected to its being tackled ON to the
Diplomatic, and Consular Bill. The
principal cause OF its failure, however,
was the Democratic doctrine which in
weighs against all forms of subsidy. This
being the case the prospect for the
measure in the next Congress will be
very poor as that body, particularly in
the House, will be overwhelmingly
Democratic.
Great disappointment is expressed in
commercial circles in this city over the
defeat of the Cable Bill, as it was re-
garded as of vast importance to San
Francisco commercially and to the ma
tior, r,ol;f;ooIIr,