Evening star., 1897-06-09
RUSHING RAW SUGAR
An Interesting Interview With Mr..
O. A. Spreckels Of Frisco.
NOT The SUGAR TRUST MAN
An Attempt to Evade Payment Of
About $16,ooo,ooo.
HOW TO CHECKMATE IT

Mr. c. A. Spreckels of San Francisco,
who Is not connected with the sugar trust
as are his father and brother. points out
in the following interview with a Star re-
porter how the sugar trust expects to
evade for the next six months the in
creased tariff raw sugar and he also
suggests plan by which the scheme of
the trust may be defeated.
THE purpose of this extra session and of
the new tariff measure. said Mr. Spreck-
els. lis to increase the income or revenue
of the government. Among other things,
the duty on imported raw sugar is in
creased from about SIG per short ton, at
present, to about s32 per short ton. under
the Dingley bill. and to considerably more
under the schedule proposed by Mr.. AID
rich. / presume it Is generally supposed
by the public that this increased duty on
raw sugar will be collected Immediately as
soon the tariff bill becomes a law. So
II will in theory. but in practice, or in fact,
IL will not for some time after the act be-
comes operative. The sugar trust has al
ready provided to evade the increased tax
on raw sugar for as long a period as pos
sible.
The Trust Rushing in Raw Sugar.
I'm ordinary times the sugar trust car
ries from 10000 to 100000 tons Of raw
sugar III STOCK 10 De WOThcu up lHlO
fined sugar. That amount of supply
hand is amply sufficient to meet ordinary
demands. AS soon. however, as it became
apparent that special session of Congress
would be convened by the President for the
purpose of increasing the revenues of the
government by higher tariff and as soon
as ii was known that raw sugar would be
an article upon which higher duty would
be levied, the sugar trust proceeded at once
to balk the purpose of the special session.
far as it related to itself. 1t began to
rush into this country raw sugar from
every country in the world where that COM
modify is produced. The ocean has been
almost crowded with sails bringing car
goes of raw sugar to our ports. and today
there are speeding to this country fleet of
vessels, almost without number, laden with
sugar, all hoping to reach their destl-
nation before the new tariff bill goes into
effect.
Already, according to Willett & Gray's
circular, the sugar trust has In storage
over $1,000 long tons of raw sugar, or
nearly 100000 short tons. 1t is the opinion
of experts that before the new tariff meas
ure goes into effect the sugar trust will
have in stock in its warehouses from $685.
Sp to 1UO.WO short tons OF raw sugar
This vast amount of sugar is over six
months supply for the United States. BY
importing il before the new tariff bill goes
into operation the sugar trust saves the
amount Of the increased duty over the pres
ent rate. As / stated before, the increase
in the Dingley bill over present rates IS
abou; s16 per short ton, and in the una
M.ended Aldrich schedule II was over SIS
per snort ton. Now the sugar trust by
thus anticipating the operation of the new
tariff law, expects to save in customs
duties from sI3,O1OOO to $16,0O,OOO
This vast sum OF money will go into the
treasury of the sugar rust, instead of into
the treasury of the United States.
How to Make the Trust Pay.
You ask if there is any way by which
the sugar monopoly may be thwarted in this
gigantic scheme conspiracy. 1 reply
lat / think there is. That vast amount
of raw sugar has been imported to evaGe
q tax which the country needs, and which
the people will have to pay to the trust,
instead of to the government. The ques-
ton simply is, how to compel the sugar
monopoly to pay to the government the
tax which IL will collect from the people.
II Is very simple thing. Mr.. Dingey pro-
posed TO collect this tax by providing that
all articles imported into the country after
April should pay the increased tariff or
rather the rates fixed by the new tariff
measure But there is a simpler way to
Teach the sugar trust than that. 1t is this:
Let the tariff measure provide that an in
ternal revenue tax of SIG, or SIS or $50
ljtr ton be levied on all sugars refined IN
E3ais country for the next six months The
= ormous stock of raw sugar which the
crust has imported will have to be refined
within that period The deterioration stor-
the holding of II over that time. In this
way the government will get the tax which
the sugar trust hopes to collect for its own
treasury"