Evening bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1895-1912, 1896-09-28
SUGAR.
The Extensive Operations Of Great
Trust,

The Extensive Operations Of a Great
Trust.
The consumption of sugar in
1890 reached 66 pounds per capita.
In 1870 the per capita consump-
ton was 33 pounds, so the con.
suming ability of the American
people has increased during the
brief interval referred to fully 100
per cent. The assumption that
the cheapening of the product is
responsible for this enormous in
crease in consumption is hardly
borne out by the facts There are
many countries in which the pro
duction of sugar has been made
specially in which consumption
has grown very slowly-Germany,
Austria and Russia are notable
instances. The inference is OBJ.
vious that cheapness does not
alone explain the increased de.
mand. Indeed, the period between
1865 and 1870, when the trend of
the price of sugar was upward
rather than downward was also
marked by increased consumption
in the United States.
The United States is compelled
to import the bulk of the sugars
consumed within it's borders.
The exceptionally high tariff
which prevailed between the
close of the Civil war and 1890
did not act as a stimulus to the
industry. In 1880 with tariff
averaging % cents pound we
only produced l25,00O tons. In
1890 the tariff on raw sugar was
repealed and a bounty was offered.
This served to promote produc-
ton. the recorded output of cane
and beet sugar for the years of
1S9495 being $4,000 tons. The
repeal of the bounty by the De-
mocratic Congress, it is expected,
will have a disastrous effect on
the beet sugar industry in all
other States than California. 1t
is believed that the superior
qualities of the beets grown in
this State may permit the profita
bic pursuit of beet sugar making
no matter how severe the COM
petition, but as yet the matter is
prohlematical.
The refining industry in this
country has attained enormo
proportions, and raw sugars are
converted into commodities at
tractive to the most fastidious at
phenomenally low cost as COM
pared with the old-time pro-
cesses.
Fifty years ago the cost of re-
fining added at least 10 cents
pound to the value of raw sugar.
The margin between refined and
raw was gradually reduced be-
tween 1888 and 1876 to about 3
cents a pound. Now the enor-
nous refneries controlled by the
American Sugar Refining Com
pany convert raw into refined
sugar at a cost of a fraction of a
cent a pound.
The refineries of the company
referred to are unquestionably
the finest and most complete in
the world. Some idea of the
magnitude of their operations
may be gained from the statement
that they consume 100000 tons of
coal annually, and require 200,.
OOO,OOO slaves every year to make
the barrels in which their pro-
duct is put upon the market.
The American Sugar Refining
Company is popularity known as
the Sugar Trust. The principal
seat of its operations is in Brook
lyn, where it has mile of water
front on the East river, every bit
of which is utilized, being covered
with mammoth buildings and
storehouses. The trust also has
extensive refineries in Jersey
City, Baltimore, New Orleans,
Philadelphia, Boston and San
Francisco and absolutely mono
polizes the industry of the coun-
try. Its capitalization is S75,000,-
600, and its annual product is
perhaps more than twice that
"