The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1896-12-30
GREEDY SUGAR MEN
importers Before the Ding
ley Committee Asking
Taxes to Raise
the Price.
NJ M'MILLIN WORRIES THEM
Methods Of the Trust Not Easy to
Get At-Defsnders Of
Monopoly.

SION OF the Committee on Ways and
Means today was given to the question
OF sugar duties. The sugar importers
views We're voiced BY Mr. John Farr Of
New York, who said that. at a recent
meeting Of the sugar importers of thar
city, it was unanimously decided that an
ad valorem rate Of duty was unfair. un
reliable and exceedingly difficuat in prac-
tlce; that one cent pound should be i'm
posed on all sugar below rs degrees po-
lariscope; and that additional discrirnina1-
ing duties should be levied on ali s,1gars
coming from bounty-paying countries.
The beet sugar interest was reDresent4d
ny MT Henry T. Oxhard. of Grand island
Nep.; Mr.. Herbert Myrich, of Chicago.
edMor of the American Agric,,I+urist ;,
dna dasl. Nj. f. Mallan, Of Amos. Neb, Presi-
Gent Of the Beet Sugar Association The
cane sugar interst Of Louisiana was rem
resented by Mr.. ]. D. Hill of New Orleans.
N9 ss9 rreMpreSentative M Of the sugar refining
hadustFy has applied for a hearing. and,
lhere was conspicuous absence Of ina
members OF the sugar trust
~ tne course OF his statement Mr.. Farr
5as rec. she lolIoWing figures as being the
nearest 20 an ad valorem basis. and as
representing fairly all interests =
In al sugars testing by the polari-
scope, wnen landed, IS degrees or under.
one cent per pound, on net landed weight
adding .03 per degree, for each degree
up to 100 degrees, traction Of 4 decree ef
70 pc assessed in proportion
an q a1aluonal duty on sugars above
no. 10 Dutch standard in color to pre-
vent the foreign rehners from entering
tnelr sort refined sugars here at the srna
rate OF duty as raw. sugars of the same
It was also recommended that an adj
dltlonal discriminating duty on all sugars
coming from bounty paying countries.
win authority to the Executive to reduce
increase ,o1 <7.s%x~
proportion as the bounty paying cour-
tries may from time to time raise or
lower their bounties
II Was estimated that average polar
izafion OF raw sugars imported into fhis
country is about 80 degrees S,lch
sugars would pay 151 per pound dufv.
whier would produce an annual revenue
on this article of about $50, 600 900. calcu-
lating on importation of about 1500 600
tons or dudable sugars. which has heen
been the average for the. past few years.
phreys, of New York who said that he
had been appointed Chairman of com
mites OF the sugar trade of New York
Committee and tell it something about
the difficulties of the existing tariff An
ad valorem rate, as applied to sugar
and to ask that, In making its new
tariff measure. it should be made on the
line OF specific duties on sugar. MIR
Humphreys enumerated some of the
reasons why a specific duty on sugar
system The ad valorem system, ne
said, was unfair to the merchant be-
cause he never knew what duties he had
to pay until the cargo was hquidated;
unfair to the government as a revenue
measure, and entirely unreliable. The
revenus from sugar two years ago had
been about forty three millions; last year
about thirty millions, and he doubted
whether this year it would reach twenty
one millions This decrease Of revenue
was due not to any falling off In importa-
ton, but IN the reduction of the invoice
prices. He estimated, however, that un-
der the specific mates as advocated by the
sugar trade of New York the revenue
from sugar would be from forty-nine to
fifty millions
would not the cost Of sugar. Mr..
Evans Of Kentucky asked. sbe advanced
20 the consumer
Yes Mr., Humphreys replied, .'but the
additional cost would be so inexpressibly
small that it would cut no figure in the
expenses Of a family
Mr.. Evans inquired as to the total i'm
portation of sugar from the Hawaiian
Islands.
Mr. Humphreys estimated the inporta-
ton of this years crop at 10000 tons.
! TEN per cent. of the whole sugar i'm
portation of the country" Mr.. Evans
Yes. sir. ten per cent" said Mr.. Hum
phreys.
P. ]. Smith. of New York, wished to
impress upon the committee the diff
he said it was impossible to tell what
the rate would be until the sugar was
landed. He cited one case where the
difference IN duty on cargo amounted
to $4,000, the rise taking place while the
sugar was being shipped. 1t was i'm
possible to land this cargo and it had
to be sent to Liverpool. In this way many
sales were lost
Mr. James d. Hill, of New Orleans,
made an argument on behalf OF a COM
mittee of the American Cane-Growing
Association. He asked that the rate OF
duty on sugar under the act of 1888 be
reiinposed. Nothing less than that. he
said, would be satisfactory
Mr. Payne inquired as to what the rev.
enue would be il the duty Of 1855 was re-
stored
Mr.. Hill calculated that the revenue
would be from seventy to eigf1ty million
dollars. He added that he had present
ducers OF sugar whose hope 1t was that.
under the tariff which they recommend
ed there would be such development of
the sugar growing interest n this coun-
try, as would supply all its consumption.
+ Firss-That specific duties. dependen.
upon both polariscopic test and colors
standard should be imposed in lien of
second~That commencing with 10 for
standard. and proceeding by 0.A for each
degree above IS, the duties on sugar above
Is Datch standard be proportionately in
ThiTd-That countervailing duties az
fecting export bounties be imposed
Fourth--A proportionate duty be i'm
posed on nlolassess
FiEth--That the new Law should have
force from the passage of the act; and
Sixtli-That in the event of the adop-
tion Of reciprocity treaties and conven-
tions, It shall be without injury TO the
domestic sugar Industry. and on lines
Which fully recognize the over-sha7ow~
ing Importance Of developing sugar pros
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