Omaha daily bee., 1899-12-06
BEET SUGAR GROWERS MEET
Representatives from Dozen States Attend
the Gathering.
CHOOSE OFFICERS FOR THE NEXT YEAR
Adopt Resolutions Against Free
Trade, Claiming that 1t VIII In
jure Sugar Industry in
This Country.

The annual meeting of the American Beet
Sugar association occurred yesterday at the
Milard hotel. Representatives were present
as follows T. r. Cutler Lehi factory,
Utah; David Eccles, Ogden factory, Utah.
Thomas ID. Dee. LaGrande factory, Oregon
Hayward G. Leavitt and r. M. Allen, Ames
factory, Nebraska ]. G. Hamilton, Norfolk
and Grand Island factories, Nebraska
Theo Haapke, Pekin factory, Illinois; Gill
bert w. Lee, Detroit factory, Michigan;
julius Stroh, Rochester factory, Michigan
N. H. Stewart, Kalamazoo factory, Michi-
gan; w. l.. Churchill, Bay City factory,
Michigan Henry T. Oxnard Oxnard and
Chino factories, California.
Meeting with the association were a num-
ber of representatives of the National Cigar
Leaf Tobacco Growers association, the Rice
Growers association of Louisiana and the
National Truck Farmers association. These
representatives had been attracted to Omaha
by an understanding that concerted steps
will be taken by a coalition of American
growers Of sugar beets, cigar leaf tobacco,
rice, fruits, early garden truck and other
semi tropic produce, to protest against the
admission into this country duty free of the
products of Cuba, Porto Rico and the Phil
ppines, and to oppose any reductions of the
revenues upon such products from those in
sular dependencies.
Ex-senator Manderson addressed the meet
ing by invitation. He went over the history OF
the beet sugar industry in this country and
the steps that had been taken for its en-
couragement, and pointed out the disas-
tTous effects that would follow any material
reduction of the revenues that have been
eXacted upon the importation of sugar from
the new dependencies. He advised that the
sugar growers of this country send an agent
to Washington to lay before the members
of congress the results that must follow
freer admission than has hitherto been ac-
corded of sugar made by coolie labor in the
dependencies. Henry T. Oxnard, who pre-
sided, paid Senator Henderson a high COM
plment and declared that it was that gem
tleman who had been mainly instrumental
in securing for the beet sugar industry such
encouragement as it had received.
Myrick's Address.
The meeting was also addressed by Her
bert Myrck, editor of the Orange Judd agri-
cultural publications, who declared that do
mestic agriculture is now face to face
with fight for the life Of
it's most profitable specialties, and that the
vast domestic interests involved in the
culture of sugar crops, cigar leaf tobacco,
semi-tropic fruits, early vegetables, rice,
etc, are threatened with extinction. The
beet sugar industry, just now entering upon
lusty young manhood, is threatened with
annihilation Domestic capital and labor
engaged in the manufacture of cigars face
revolution.
The worst fears will be realized, Mr.. My
rick asserted, II tropical produce is admitted
into the United States free OF duty from
Cuba, Porto Rico and the Philippines,
Hopes have been expressed that nothing of
the kind was contemplated, but the secre-
tary of war has come out with an earnest
recommendation for free trade with Porto
Rico. He attempts to show also that the
cane sugar industry in Cuba cannot stand
up against the competition that will thus
be developed by Porto Rican sugar in our
domestic markets. He therefore recon-
mends admitting Cuban sugar at reduction
of 1917 per cent from the present tariff-the
rate that is contemplated by the pending
treaty of reciprocity with Jamaica OF
course this is only the entering wedge to abb
solutey free trade with Cuba. The economic
problem involved in our relations with the
Philippines also grows in compleXity from
day to day, with many influences at work
to admit Philippine produce free OF duty.
He said that an example is afforded in the
over capitalized trusts of Hawaii, where ag-
riculture has developed with unprecedented
speed since the annexation OF the Sandwich
islands. The remission of duties on trop-
ical produce is simply bounty paid to trop-
cal trusts and robs the federal treasury Of
millions of revenue. Besides waglng a war
on behalf of the tropics, which will cost
81 600, 100000, we are asked to remit taxes
on tropical produce in the best market in
the world. The parties which will be bene-
fitted by this will be mainly the tropical
syndicates and the sugar refners' trust
Only this week it was announced that the
American Sugar Refining company has OBJ
tanned options on all the Independent refiner-
les and glucose works which are uniting
in a trust with $2OO,OOO,0OO capital. The
members Of the trust own few factories in
this country but have made enormous pur-
chases OF sugar plantations in Cuba and
Porto Rico and are ready to operate on a
still larger scale in the Philippines the mo-
ment they can acquire title there. Then
they will cut the price Of sugar for a time
and drive out the American cane and beet
sugar factories, after which they will shove
up the price again. American labor cannot
with cOolie labor. II the matter