The Goodland republic. [volume] (Goodland, Kan.) 1891-1907, 1896-07-24
fl4R IH LAH& I#GEI.
A. O. Clement Resumes His Observations on
the Sugar Beet Industry.
This Year Proved Dry ORe IN California
Less sbaa Nine Inches Of Rain
Having Fallen In the Past
Esas-OtheE Polats.
CHTNo. al. July Is. les.

GDL4Dh L1QQLSAU LtEEb bLtJ--OSdE
Sir: The work in the beet fields is
over until harvest. l think when I
wrote you last that planting was about
thEongh;s sinoe then it has been thin
ming and hoeiag mostly. The cultiyat-
ing is soon done, as one can get over
ten acres q day easy, but thinning and
hoeing. it is a good hand that can do
one half acre in Que day. The beets
sli have to be hoed once and some twice.
so you SEQ it makes lots of work to take
care Of 5000 acres, and that is what
there is in beets on this ranch. The
agricultural manager for the sugar
company thinks the crop looks we'll at
this time and does not believe it will
fall short Of last year in tonnage more
than a 1000 tons, and this is a dry year
here; small fraction over eight inches
Of rain fell last winter, and you know
Ne have none through the summer,
The factory will start up the 9th of
this month.
They are now working a large force
of men putting in some new machinery
and repairing, getting everything in
order, for some parts of the works do
not stop after they commence until
they are through. There are no beets
hauled to the factory on Sunday and a
part Of the machinery is shut down
from six o'clock Sunday morning until
six o'clock in the evening. The eapac-
ity Of the factory is 800 tons of beets in
q hours, but from what I can learn l
do not think it is run to full capacity
much Of the time. The average amount
of sugar per ton is a little short of
three hundred pounds. The price per
ton for the beets last was s4.29, it will
be % cents less this year they
say on account of the bounty having
been taken off American sugar The
average tonnage per acre is about
twelve tons, varying a little as the sea-
sons vary.
Now for protection to the farmer and
laboring man. The reader will please
remember that the price of beets has
been lowered % cents per ton
on account of the Mckinley bounty
paid by the government to the manu-
faeturer Of American sugar having been
removed. This was one Of the things
that was impressed upon my mind by
one of the ofiaials of this ranch on my
arrival here. Now then this bounty
was two cents per pound on all high
grade sugars. There is some rough
sugar which they do not refine so the
amount of granuIated sugar from each
ton of beets is a little over two hundred
and fifty pounds. On this the manu-
feetursr would receive little over five
dollars from the government. Please
bear in mind that the sugar company
or manufacturer gets the bounty on
last years product. That now they cut
the price of the beets % cents per ton
and receive no bounty, thus we see
chat that amount is what the farmer
was protected while the manufacturer
was protected five dollars on the pro-
duct of each ton. Some of the farmers
do not do any Of the farm wor K them
selves so let us see how the day laborer
comes out. One would suppose by the
amount of hand labor here that work
nust be plenty and wages good. In
the very busiest time in thinning beets
work is plenty aud then it costs three
dollars to get beets thinned but that
only lasts short time and work gets
scarce and an OverproductiOn of help
from Mexico causes wages to fall to
1926 per acre and from so to rs cents
per acre for hoeing. These Mexicaus
come here and stay through the sugar
best season, live in tents or some
shsnty cheaper, are good men to work
il enc watches them to see that they
do their work well, bat will work for
what wages they can get and the man
hiring viii not pay more than he has
b. Now can some tell me how much a
uhisa American is protected by the
bounty of two cents per pound on
sugar OF any amount of tariff. This
place aud the sugar business is no ex-
oeption, go where you will and the
same condition exists.
The Southern Pacific railroad this
s one Of Huntingtou's roads that the
g07erament has paid for bailding) have
agshg Of Mexieans working for them
at one dollar a day and board them
selves and compel them to buy all their
supplies at the cOmpany's store. It
must be remembered that the present
condition has been brought about IN
der tie shoop Of protection to the
American iabOrer. The republican
psrty here are declaring fer free silver
and Mckinley. They may fool all the
people here but doubt it. Their plat
f0rm pledges them to restore the sugar