Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1898-01-18
Identity Of the Spreckels and Have
meyer Interests Shown.
H0W TIE DEAL WAS EFFECTED
Trust Buys Half Interest in spreck-
- els Beet Sugar Factories.
OPPOSING AN MEX TON

would be injurious to the sugar trust The
following statement will show that the
trust is not submitting passively to the
injury of it's interests.
In the east the opposition of the sugar
trust to annexation is being exercised Sc
cretly, for the reason that if it were open
the trust is in such repute that its opposi-
tion would react and create friends for
annexation.
Science has demonstrated that a man
may survive without a stomach, but it
never atten pied to sever the Siamese
twins. Although the latter were two sep
arate persons they were joined together
by an indissoluble bond. Claus Spreckels
on the Pacific coast and the Havemeyer
interests in the eastern states are the
Sianese twins which together constitute
the sugar trust. The American Sugar Re-
fining Company, with headquarters at New
York, and the Western Refinery Company.
with headquarters at San Francisco, are
practically one and the same concern.
How Spreckels and the Trust ANAL
Eamnted.
TO properly understand the relations of
the eastern and western branches of the
sugar trust, it is necessary to go back few
years in their history.
Prior to 1887 the American Sugar Ref1n-
ing Company, otherwise known as the
Sugar Trust" confined it's operations to
the territCIy east of the Missouri river,
the sugar refining industry of the Pacific
coast being under the control of two re-
fI cries, one of which owned by Claus
Spreckels, and the other known the
American Refinery.
About 1887, the trust having gained prac-
teal control of the eastern refining busi-
ness, announced its intention of controlling
that of the Pacific coast, and purchased
the American Refinery at San Francisco
by threatening to freeze it's owners out if
they did not sell out. 1t then attempted
by the same means to force Claus Spreck-
els out of business. He carried the war
into Africa, however, built refinery in
Philadelphia and began competition with
the trust in it's own territory. He also in
proceedings against the trust refinery in
California on the ground that it the
property of trust. and as such in viola
ton of the laws of the state.
On the petition for the appointme of a
receiver and coniiscaton of the refinery, IA
temporary receiver was appointed; but
upon trial of the cause a document
produced in court showing that shortly be-
fore the seizure of the refinery the trust
had sold it to Havemeyer and another of
the leading men of the trust for 81, ,GtU.G9I
secured by mortgage back to the trust
for the entire purchase price, without in
terest.
Notwithstanding the transparency of this
transaction, the case was dismissed and
the refinery continued to run in the name
Of MIR. Havemeyer and his individual assC-
GATES. 1t continued to be, and still is
enumerated however, among the assets of
the trust.
Deal ON the Pacific Coast.
After several years Of competition
Spreckels and the trust compromised by
Spreckels selling his Philadelphia refinery
to the trust, and the following deal was
made on the Pacific coast:
In order to evade the California law
against trusts. a new California corpora
ticn was formed, called the western Re
finery Company" Cne-half of which was
subscribed for by the Spreckels refinery
al d the other half by the trust refinery.
The Spreckels refinery and the trust re-
frery were then leased to the new corpora
tion. 1t was agreed between Spreckes and
the trust that the rev company should be
under the control of five directors, two
representing the trust interests, two the
Spreckels, the fifth to be an umpire be-
tween them.
The first directors of the new company
were Claus Spreckels and his son John,
representing his interests, and Robert Ok
nard and Richard Sprague, representing
the trust; while Thomas Brown, cashier
of the Bank If California, made um-
pire. The directors remain the same ex-
cept that Adolph Spreckels, another son of
Claus Spreckels, has been substituted in
his fathers place, and that Mr.. Sprague
has been substituted by Mr.. Rothmaler,
formerly superintendent of the trust re-
finery at Greenpoint. L. ]. Robert Oxnard
was part owner Of a Brooklyn refinery
which was absorbed by the trust; he Is
row the active business manager of the
entire Spreckes-Trust business on the Pa
cific coast, occupying the same office with
Claus Spreckels.
After the formation of the new company
one of the refineries was closed and the
entire refining business has since been
carried on by the other.
Spreckels' Beet Sugar Factories.
The interests of Claus spreckels and the
sugar trust are identical in other branches
besides the refinery. After the amalgama
tion Of the Sprcckels and trust refining in
terests, above set forth, Spreckels erected
a beet sugar factory at Watsonville, Cal,
and in 1897 began the construction of an
other at Salinas.
Last summer he sold a half interest in
both factories to the sugar trust. The
deal was at first denied, but afterwards
fully admitted by Spreckels and the trust.
Spreckels IS therefore not only wholly iden-
tilted with the trust in the refining busi-
ness, but In his beet sugar enterprises as
we'll
Neither the Watsonville or the Salinas
factories refine their own product The en-
tire output is under contract to, and is re-
fined by, the western sugar refinery, which
is owned in equal shares by Spreckcls and
the trust, and under the direct management
tive.
Sc much for the identity in interest OF
Spreckels and the trust.
Spreckcls' Hostility to Annexation.
The following statement shows the sys-
tematic hostility of Spreckels to annexa-
ton:
Immedia tcly after the overthrow of the
monarchy, Spreckcls went to Honolulu and
tried to induce the government to with
draw it's proposition for annexation. pro-
posing that the government be continued
as an oligarchy. in order that the planters
might continue to import Chinese labor.
He caused the United States law against
immigration of contract labor to be printed
and spread broadcast throughout Hawaii
hoping thereby to create hostility to an
nexation among the planters. Failing in
his object, Spreokels became violent par
tisan of the ex-queen and Of restoration of
the monarchy, and still continues to advo-
cate such policy
For the purpose of injuring the credit of
the new government he bought up several
hundred thousand dollars worth of over
due notes. which had been issued by the
queens government, which, owing to an
empty treasury, inherited from the mon
q rcb hA al novf