Bismarck weekly tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1884-1943, 1900-02-09
THE FARMER AND SUGAR.

Herbert Myrick, editor of the Orange
Judd Farmer, and chairman of the
League of American Producers, has
written al open letter to Senator Nelson
of Minnesota, who is a member of the
senate committee on Puerto Rico. Mr..
Myrick takes a stand against the pro-
posed free introduction>pf Puerto Rican
products to the United States and cites
figures to show that in the three years
ir which W. had practical free trade
with Puerto Rico the average increase in
wheat flour exported to Puerto Rico was
only 100000 barrels a year. Under the
most favorable free trade conditions the
three years experience demonstrates
that Puerto Rico's import trade from the
United States increased only about SO
cents per capita for its million popula-
ton, of which increase 40 cents was for
American farm products, including only
Is cents for breadstutfs of all kinds. Mr..
Myrick then goes on to say:
Now turn to the northwest Minnesota,
with its population of 100000: Wiscon-
sin, 2,l3S,0O; North Dakota, 235, 5000,
and South Dakota, 100000. The per
capita consumption of sugar in the Unit
ed States is nearly seventy pounds an
nually, but at only sixty pounds each
these people in the northwest consume
nearly $4,000 tons of refined graduated
sugar per annum At a wholesale price
of four cents a pound, your people of the
northwest consume practically S11 ,OOO,-
600 worth Of sugar. This is more than
twenty-five times Puerto Rico's increased
consumption Of all American farm prod
ucts under free trade, and almost one
hundred times as much as her increased
consumption of wheat flour. Now. |
contend that it is a far better PROPOSE
ton for northwestern agriculture to pro-
duce this SlO,OOO,UO or Sl2,O0O,OOO worth
of sugar within its own borders than to
kill the beet sugar industry by chasing
after the pitifully small breadstuffs
trade Of Puerto Rico. Or, if we include
Cuba with Puerto Rico, you will see that
the northwest consumes more than twice
as much sugar in value as the two
islands increased their total consumption
Of American farm products.
10 produce the sugar your northwest
consumes would require the production
OF nearly 100000 tons of sugar beets, es-
timating each ton of beets to yield 200
pounds of refined granulated sugar. At
81 per ton, your farmers in the north
west would receive nearly $6,O0O,000 an
nually for this new and profitable crop,
and as much more would be paid for
labor, supplies and profits on capital in
vested. You would thus keep at home
among your WI peopls the Sl1 100000
or Sl2,NOO,OW now sent away from your
section each year to pay for the sugar
your people consume. Not only that
but the beet pulp or by-product from
the sugar factories, being a most valu-
able feed for all animals, and especially
for cows, would greatly promote the
dairy interests of the northwest. 10
work up these beets and produce the
sugar that your northwestern people
now import would require at least forty
five factories OF an average capacity of
three hundred tons Of beets per twenty
four hours for n hundred days. Each
factory would represent an investment
of from $4,000 to s35O,OOO, or, at an
average Of 100000, would require a
total investment of sl3,5OO,OOO, In other
words, the money your people of the
northwest pay away each year for their
sugar would in a single year pay for all
the factories needed to work up enough
beets to furnish this sugar.
Now, as a man intimately familiar with
the west and northwest and whose early
life was spent in the Centennial state
am profoundly convinced that it is fal
wiser to thus foster the production right
here at home of this great staple of con
sumption than to foster it's production ir
Puerto Rico, Cuba or the Philippines
Even after paying the existing duties
cane sugar sold on the New York mar
ket yields the Puerto Rico planter s3
to $42 net profit an acre over and above
all possible expenses. This is as much
or even larger profit than our northwest
ern farmers could make on sugar beets
because they pay good wages and board
while the Puerto Rican peon is glad tt
work for from 10 cents to 80 cents a day
and lives on S cents a day. Remove tn
present tariff and 500 to Sl35 an acre +