The Washington times., 1894-05-06
MR.. WARNER ON SUGAR.

MR.. WARNER ON SUGAR.
ALuminous Statement of Facts-The Peo-
PIE Versus the Trust.
This country uses, roughly, 1000, 600, 900
pounds of refined sugar year. OF this the
sugar trust supplies about s5 per cent, the
remainder being furnished by so-called Gin
dependent re1ners, who are either in COM
bine with the trust or blackmailing it-using
its prices as a normal for their own, and
hence constituting no actual rivalry.
The sugar trust has three distinct advantages
which do not depend upon the tariff: First,
handling, as it does, one-fourth of the entire
amount Of sugar consumed in the world-our
United States consumption being considerable
over one-fourth OF the worlds use-and pos
sessing unlimited capital, it has perfected q
purchasing combine which embraces every
country where raw sugar is produced, and
consequently secures its supplies from one
eighth of a cent upward per pound less than
any possible rival. Second, after years OF
negotiations it has perfected distributing
combine, by which it practically controls the
distribution of refined sugar in this country
the extent to which the so-called "indepen-
dent" refiners market their sugars being a
matter of sufferance on the part Of the trust,
except for slight local market in some cases.
Third, its new refneries, by far the largest
and most economically operated In the world,
refine sugar from 10 to Is cents per 100
pounds of product more cheaply than do the
smaller and less effective refineries Of other
countries.
This situation is not materially affected by
foreign bounties. So far as these are paid
upon raw sugars they tend simply to furnish
the sugar trust with better, cheaper, and more
abundant raw material. The only case in
which possible rival has any advantage on
refined sugars is that Of Germany, whose
bonus to refners for export is 81 cents per
100 pounds.
The result is that under absolute free trade
the sugar trust possesses advantages which
would in any case make it the most profitable,
as 1t is the most powerful, OF our great indus
trial trusts, and no consideration is therefore
due 1t even from the most ultra protectionist
standpoint Not merely this. but in view Of
/
is well known and undisputed that any special
tariff upon refined sugars can be expected to
produce no revenue, and is pure and simple
protection for the benefit of the trust. with
out results to the government.
The proper policy of Democratic Congress
in this regard might easily be imagined.
The actual course of events has been as
follows:
First-In the Wilson bill as reported to the
House Of Representatives protective duty Of
one-quarter cent per pound was assessed upon
all sugars above No. 16, Dutch standard-the
effect of this being to give clear extra bonus
of above sSO0O.0 GOO per annum to the sugar
trust, and between 81 ,0O0,0 and $4,000, 900
to its bogus independent" rivals.
Second-The House OF Representatives
struck out this protection to the sugar trust
and left it to earn its own living.
Third-As reported to the Senate Finance
Committee by its subcommittee. the tariff
bill proposes a revenue duty on sugar graded
according to polariscopic test, and amount
ing to about S1.27 on the amount of standard
raw sugar sufficient to make 100 pounds Of
refined sugar, with special discriminating
duty of S1.40 per 100 pounds on refined
and other sugars above 96 degrees. This
schedule was open to the criticism that 1t un-
duly burdened raw sugars Of 81 and 9S de-
grees. Subject to this defeat, OF prospective
rather than present importance, the schedule
thus proposed CATER allowance for net waste)
gave the trust an extra bonus Of from one
eighth to one-sixth of a cent-in most cases
approaching the former rather than the latter
figure-thus making the trust at the expense
OF the American people OF about $4,000. 600
a year. and distributing something less than
| dents"
| Fourth-As reported By the Senate Finance
Committee TO the Senate, the assessment Of
duty according to the polariscopic test was so
extended as to include 9S degrees sugars, and
a special addition was made Of 12]s cents per
100 pounds to the duties otherwise assessed
| upon all sugars, either testing above 9S de-
grees or in color above No. 16, Dutch stand
ard. The effect OF the change between this
and the last preceding schedule was, first. to
correct the defect above noted. and second.
to exclude by duty which became more and
more oppressive as their saccharine degree
was lowered the numerous grades of cheap
white sugars refined by processes other than
thar used By the trust. thus giving it and its
colsborers specially secured monopoly OF all
supplies OF white sugars in the United States
matter of comparatively small but fast in
creasing Importance. The effect. therefore,
was frs. practically to prohibit any importa-
ton of refined sugars except upon terms
which would giveto the trust special bonus
of from one-eighth cent upwards-the imme-
date profit secured to American refiners being,
however, about the same as under the sub
committees proposition-the present advan-
tage Of keeping out sugars refined by other
processes not being much more than enough
to make up for the slight decrease In the
specific protection given high grade sugars.
Fifth-The terms Of the surrender now pro-
posed to the trust, as outlined by Mr.. Have
meyers demands, which seems to have been