The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1892-03-14
HOW san FnAN,Isco Is rHRorrLED.

The practical working of the combine be-
tween tie continental railroads. the Pacific
Mail ard the Panama Railroad on the trade
Of San Francisco was well explained by a
city merchant in Saturdays CALL.
This country consumes, one year with
another, about COO 000, 600 pounds of coffee
annually. a small portion of this comes
from Jaya-sO small a portion that it is
hardly worth reckoning. All the rest comes
either from Brazil or from Central America.
II we estimate the value of our importa-
tons OF coffee at Sos. 600, 000-the amount.
Of course, fiuctuates with the price of the
aTricle-we may say that So, 600 COO are
paid to Brazil and about SIS, G0O.0O0 are paid
to Central America each year for coffee.
The Brazil coffee reaches New \ ork either
by Nj. HuD:ington's line Of Brazil steamers
on by one Of several foreign lines which
make triangular voyages from Liverpool or
hamburg or Antwerp to Brazil, thence to
New York with coffee, ard thence to the
home port with grain or any other freight
which offers. One of these is the Liverpool,
Brazil and River Plate Navigation Com
pauy, another is the Red Cross line, third
Is the Booth Steamship Company. All these
lines charge uniform rates of freight, and
by agreement with the trunk lines Of rail-
load from New \ ork they issue through
bills OF Iadirg from Rio, Bahia and Santos
to Chicago at 50 cents per hundred pounds.
On the other hand, the coffee of Costa
Rica, Guatemala and Salvador reaches San
Francisco IN the Pacific Mail steamers,
which charge 62A cents for carrying it
from the point Of departure to this port.
From San Francisco to Chicago the railroad
rate is so cents-it is more to intermediate
points where there is no water competition
SO that Central American coffee costs for
freight when laid down in Chicago 81 4211z
Ter 100 pounds, as against 80 cents which
Brazil coffee costs laid down at the same
point. Tie policy Of the combined carriers
on this Coast gives 20 New \ rk diScrimi-
mating preference over San Francisco of 90h
cents per GENITAL in the largest coffee market
In this country.
Coffee is an article so widely consumed,
especially by the poorer class, that a very
small difference in price between two classes
If beans Will make a vast difference in the
consumption OF each. AS a general rule,
Central American coffee is better article
than Brazil coffee. In Brazil the bushes are
old and often worn out. Labor disturb
ances and political strife have prevented
their being replaced by new cuttings as
lLt1 SI1u-Q IWNH DcCils III AUSAd Ieltd anu
San Salvador, ard to some extent in Guate-
mala likewise. the plantations are new, the
stocks have been carefully chosen and the
trees are in the full vigor of early maturity.
Seine of the beans grown in Costa Rlca can
not easily be distinguished from the Mocha
bean and are often sold for Mocha in our
markets. 1t is safe TO say that at the same
price most coffee consumers would give the
1arpfprEppp Ia Tho Central Apnayiaan al
But if the jobber can buy Brazil coffee for a
cent pound less he will choose it instead,
and he will exert himself to distribute il
among his customers.
1t is difficult to see why Mr.. Huntington,
who owns q line of steamers to Rio and
likewise has large interest in the Pacific
Mail and the transcontinental system OF
railroads, should want TO take business
from the two latter for the sake Of bestow-
ing it on the foTmer. The distance between
the Brazil ports to Chicago, via New York,
Is 1857 miles more than the distance between
the Central American ports and the same
point via San Francisco. From San Jose
de Guatemala to San Francisco is 24i3 miles,
from San Francisco to Chicago 1858 miles,
in all 1901 miles; whereas the distance from
Rio Janeiro to New York is 5528 miles, from
New York to Chicago $50 miles. in all 64Se
miles. And yet Mr.. Huntington and his
associates profess TO be able to carry coffee
over the longer route for about one-third oil
the money which they charge for carrying
1t over the shorter route. Sound policy
would seem to dictate that they should try
to throw the most traffic to the systems in
which they have the largest interest, and
the least traffic TO the systems in which theiI
interest is the smallest. Their conduct can
only be explained on the theory that their
principle in life is to do as little business az
possible for the highest possible charges
without regard to the interest Of the COM
munity they serve or to the future pros
perlty Of the corporations they administer.