The weekly tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1891-1894, 1893-12-08
A TIME CONTRACT.
That Is the Manner In Which Sugar
Planters Looked Upon the
Bounty,
And They Will Use All Effort to
Have Some Change In the Wilson
Bill.
Mcpherson of New Jersey Will Have
Charge Of the Tariff Bill In the
Senate.

W wv oOSuI
raisers of the country, that is, very
many of them, are not satisfied with the
proposition to gradually abolish the
sugar bounty, as intended in the Wilson
bill. Subsequently they will continue
the test in the senate and the house
with the hope of securing a modification
of the clause if they cannot get it
stricken out entirely. They are assert
ing that under the promise of the con-
tinuation of the bounty granted by the
Mckinley law, which they construe as a
time contract, they had every reason to
suppose that the 3 cents a pound bounty
would be continued for 10 years from
the time the bounty was provided, and
say they will push the fight to the ut
most limit with the hope of
Securing Better Terms
than the Wilson bill gives. They assert
that they have made large OUTLAWS on
the strength of this promised bounty,
and have also made contracts for many
years ahead, which were controlled by
the same consideration. They also as
sert that in granting this bounty the
government of the United States fol-
lowed an example set by several Euro
pean nations. They say that with the
business once well started, the United
States can produce all the sugar the peo-
pie of this country will consume, and
thus keep at home the money amounting
to over 500, 900, 900 annually now sent
abroad for sugar. They show that while
the people of the United States consume
about one.third of the worlds sugar
product, they now produce, even under
the increase caused by the stimulus Of
the Mckinley bounty, only about one
tenth of the amonnt consumed in the
United States.
Under the Present Law.
Under the operations of the present
law the treasury has paid about go, 0O0.-
as bounty. OF this amount Sl7. 600. 900
was awarded for the years 1892 and 1893,
and of this sum almost $40, 600. 900 was
paid on can sugar. the cane growers
being in better condition than the pro-
ducers of sorghum. maple and beet
sugar. to take advantage Of the govern
mental g%ratuity. There was an appre-
ciable increase in all kinds of q
produced il the United States in 1893
over 1892, except the sorghum variety,
the cant sugar product increasing from
1854, 500, eco To 40, GOO. 900 pounds. the
beet sugar from 10000, 900 to -, geo. 600
pounds, and the maple sugar from
1,40O, 900 to 1854, 600 pounds.
While beet sugar is not 50 important a
product at present as cane sugar. those
interested III that industry are making
just as earnest efforts as the cane sugar
men, because they look to the time when
it will rank with, or even outstrip, the
cane article under encouraging condi-
tons, and they point to the fact that be-
ginning with 1890, when the product
was only $500, 900 pounds, the quantity
has more than doubled every wear since.
On the basis of the bounty payments
for the present year, the proposed re-
duction Of the bounty by one-eighth of
the total, or one-fourth of a cent per
pound each year, would affect Louisiana
to the exteut of over 81 900. 900 the first
year, and gradually bring the amount
paid down to nothing.