The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-06-24
MAY HAVE A SUGAR REFINERY.
THE SUGGESTION VIEWED WITH
Favor BY BUSINESS MEN.

Cane Product, What Is Needed.
Mayor Herman Myers Discusses
the Subject-saVannnh Came Near
Securing "A Big Refinery n Few
Years Ago should be a Paying
business. says Mayor Myers-Viee
| President Lane of the Citizens
bank Indorses the Idea Plenty
of Land In Chatham County That
Could he Put in Cane.
The agitation in favor OF a sugar re-
inery at Savannah for the converting of
Georgia cane syrup into sugar is likely to
result in something more important than
was at first contemplated. The idea as
first suggested by AR. Joseph Tillman of
| Quitman was to establish a refinery at
Savannah for the purpose of giving the
South Georgia farmers a market for their
cane syrup, of which there is at present
more than the market win take at
paying price, and the output of which
could readily be largely increased.
The idea as advanced by a business
man who has given the subject some at
| tention in the past is that large refin-
| ing plant should be established at Savan-
nah, not simply for converting Georgia
| syrup into sugar, but for doing a general
/ refining business importing cargoes of
| crude sugar from Cuba and converting 1t
| here into the refined article. In fact there
| are more than one who have advanced this
| idea and who are ready with arguments
| TO show that such an enterprise should
! prove successful.
Mayor Herman Myers Is always interest
| ed in anything tending TO upbuild Savan-
| nan and It's territory and he showed a
| ready interest in the matter when ap-
| preached yesterday.
DO you know" said the Mavor chat
Savannah came very gear having a large
sugar refinery three or four years ago.
Several Cuban capitalists approached me
on the subject. They said they thought
! that Savannah was the point where such
| an enterprise could De made to pay, and
| they had large amount of capital which
| they were willing 10 invest. Their PROPOSE
! ton was to put i'm 100000 to $4,000 on con-
| ditson that 100000 OF local capital should
be invested. 1 could have obtained that
much capital here at that time, aud the
! enterprise would have been a go, but for
! several untoward circumstances which in
tervened.
| There is no reason why a sugar refin-
| cry should not be established at Savan-
| nah" said Mr.. Myers, land neither is there
| any reason why 1t should not be a sue
| cess. do not believe that a refinery sim
| ply for the converting of Georgia cane
| syrup into sugar would pay. It would be
| largely a matter of experiment. the capac-
| lily of the Georgia cane for sugar produc-
| ton has never been tested and there are
| various questions of supply freight
| charges and other matters which il would
! take some time to determine. With a large
| refinery here the converting of Georgia
| syrup into sugar could be made one of the
| branches of the business, and prob
| ably paying one. Thousands of
| cations of syrup are produced in
| Georgia every year for which there is no
| market. Probably 100000 gallons OF syrup
! are produced in Georgia every year. We
| have handled a good deal of the syrup this
| season, but 1t is not in favor in the market
| for the reason that it lacks uniformity of
! qaulity and color. The syrup is produced
| by hundreds of different farmers in small
| quantities and as no great skill is display
| ed in the boiling the result is that you can
| hardly find any two barrels exactly alike.
| Parties in the North, through whom l
| have disposed of some of this syrup state
| that mixing plants could be establishing in
! the syrup producing districts by which the
| syrup could be brought to a uniform color
| and quality and that In this condition il
would be much easier to find a market for
| 1t. There is no better syrup made than
! the Georgia cane syrup and if more atten-
| ton were given by the producers to pro-
| ducing a uniform grade of good color I
] nave no DOUBT mat ready market would
! be found for it."
"As to the sugar refinery" said Mayor
| Myers Savannah possesses peculiar ad-
| vantages. 1t is the nearest port of i'm
portance to Cuba, as the Florida ports are
| too far from the markets Crude sugar
can be brought here in bulk from Cuba
more cheaply than it is now carried to
New York line of schooners could be
employed in bringing sugar here and car
j rying back lumber and other products of
| ours which are wanted in Cuba. Ii would
| not pay to go into the business on a small
scale A plant producing not less than
| 900 barrels day is what is required.
would you not have to fight the sugar
| trust?" Mayor Myers was asked.
| Undoubtedly" he replied, but with q
| large plant capable of supplying a large
area of territory, we would have an ad
vantage in this competition. Rates can
| be secured from Savannah to the West as
cheaply as from New York. 1t would be
Improbable business TO the trust to cut
rates over such large extent of terri
tory and consequently it would doubtless
be willing to enter into an agreement to
| maintain prices"
The advantage of large refinery to Sa-
vannah in the way of increasing business
and Swing employment to labor, as well
as affording market to the Georgia cane
producers, can be readily seen, and now
| that Mayor Myers has shown how this
| can DS accomplished. II Is likely tn1l
| others win take the matter up and prac-
| teal results may be expected
Mr. Mills b. Lane vice president of the
Citizens Bank. expressed himself as heart
lily in favor of sugar refinery for Sa-
| Vannah.
Il have thought for some time said
he, that a sugar refinery would pay here.
| Savannah is a good deal closer 10 Cuba
than is New York, ana we ought to be
able 10 bring in the crude sugar more
cheaply Thousands of tons of sugar
are annually transported from Cuba to
New York to be refined, and there is no
reason why the same thing should not be
done here. The refining of sugar from
Georgia cane syrup could be carried on as
q part of the business ana our South Geor-
gia farmers would be given market for
one of their crops which now returns
them very little money. Cane planting
could then be carried on on a large scale
and could hardly fall to prove more profit
able than cotton. Thousands of barrels
of cane syrup are now raised in South
| Georgia, but the output could be indef-