The sea coast echo. [volume] (Bay Saint Louis, Miss.) 1892-current, 1896-09-12


OF the poor consumers REACH" Sc
says the Times-Democrat. Will the
| Times-Democrat tell us il protection
means one thing when applied to the
republican party and another thing
when applied TO the democratic par
ty?
A tariff for adequate protection
must be Of sufficient proportion to
enable the home producer to under
sell the imported article, and at The
same time allow him 70 realize good
| profits. Now whether or not this
protection, whether democratic or re-
publican, will prove conducive to
competition and consequent low
prices, we leave for the Times-D Demo
crat TO answer.
We are told that we should not
confuse the refining business (Which
is one of the most gigantic trusts,
and has heen built up by the repub.
licans, who gave it heavy differen-
tial duties from the time they got o
chance TO make tariffs until the dem
ocratic revolution) which is not a
trust and never will be.
We should like 10 be told how the
government con protect the American
output without incidentally protect
ing the trust. The Times-Democrat
should not quarrel. The remedy 1t
recommends must Of necessity breed
the disease it abuses.
Who have ostabl ished the large re-
flneries which today embelish the
state Of Louisiana 7 The sugar trust
Or the local producers? And if the
trust can make immense profits by
using imported raw material, why
is it that the Louisiana refner, WHO
is his own producer, may not make
a still greater margin?
In previous issue, The Echo stat.
ed that as high as thirty tons Of
sugar TO the acre had been raised.
To this the Times-Democrat says:
The average in good year will be
about 20 tons, and N an exceptional
year il might come to 20 tons. The
average in a bad year--say half the
time--will be from IL to 15 tons. II
we call it 20, the gross receipt will
be about S48, and this is about the
highest figure that can be quoted
with any sort of reason.
In stating that as hugh as 80 tons
had been raised we did not mean TO
say that that was the average. The
big planter who has hundreds Of
acres under cultivation might not
obtain this result, for the simple
reason that proper care cannot be
given that much cane. We meant
the small planter, who can give the
cane his personal supervision. This
species of the producer cannot afford
to be careless. No matter how great
the profit the extent Of the crop re-
quires---as il can have his closest
attention. Therefore the yield of the
small is greater than that Of the
larger plantation.
According to the Times-Democrat
TO protect the cane fields Of Loulsi-
ana to that extent where the produc-
er would realize any profit at all
would require stupendous duty.
The insignificant "protection" of
the democratic party would not be
dropin the ocean. Truly, If the con-
dition Of the sugar industry is as
crippled as it is pictured, we should
not blame our sugar friends for seek
ing that higher protection.
We are told that our estimate OF
$50, 900 on 1000 ton refinery IS
incorrect. The Times-Democrat
places the cost at 100000 more, and
which is substantiated by Mr.. G. 5.
mcfarland, supposed to be an au-
thority on this subject. The esti-
of Mr.. Mcfarland may be right, but
we will give space to a dispatch from
New Iberia which appeared in the
Times-Democrat edition of August
20:
The new Segura sugar refinery, near
this place, is rapidly approaching com
pletlon. 1T will be 1900 ton capacity eac h
twenty-four hours, and Will cost about
100000.
The Segura refinery will have a
capacity Of 200 tons more per day
than ouf s15O,OoO one, and with that
extra capacity will cost 500, 900 less
than estimated by the opposition
We do not belive that the machinery
used by the Scgura refinery will be
inferior to that used by others,
Good machinery is cheap nowadays