The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1901-11-16
SUGAR PROBLEMS.


which emphasizes the economic article
by Brooks Adams which was comment
ed upon in these columns two days ago.
Germany Austria Hungary, France
and Russia are now gathering beet
crop far surprising in quantity that
of any previous year. 1t is all very
well to have an over abundant crop,
but when you have no market what
can you do. 1t may be remembered
that there was once a period In the
Middle West when the farmers had to
use up their corn as fuel
To Germany this comes at an espe-
cisuy unpropitious moment German
manufacturers are suffering from a Sc
we're Industrial depression, due to Am
erican competition. German coal and
iron. like other European coal and iron
is being undersold by the United
States. There is a short wheat and
rye crop. This means a very serious
reduction in the capacity for purchas-
ing among the poorer classes. If this
be So sugar is a luxury which will be
cut off, therefore the home consump-
ton, upon which a good deal depend
ed, viii be very much smaller than
formerly. A calculation by a high
commercial authority estimates the
decline during the year 190l-l9O2 as not
less than $4,000 tons.
Further Cuba has again come to the
fore, and large crops from Hawaii
Porto Rico and the beet interest in
the United States are calculated on.
There will then be a considerable dimi-
mutton in the output of German sugar
to the United States. This output has
averaged $4,000 tons during the last
four years, valued roughly at $l2,6l4,OOO
per annum. With a diminished home
consumption and a diminished export
trade, the prospects of the beet growers
and beet sugar manufacturers are in
deed gloomy.
Under all these conditions, the price
of sugar has fallen in the controlling
market at Magdeburg to the lowest
point reached during the critical year
1894-95 from which it was rescued by
an advance in the export bounty and
a constantly increasing home consump-
ton of sugar, which was then favored
by prosperous industries and growing
export trade, which steadily augmented
the comfort and purchasing power of a
large percentage of the German peo-
pie. Now, however it is generally rec
ognized that the only remedy will be in
the direction of diminished production,
and the chief organ of the German SUI
gar industry declares that a definite
and important restriction of the sugar
beet area to be planted next spring has
become an unavoidable necessity
What is true of Germany is true of
the other beet-sugar countries involv-
ed. With the exception of France they
are all poor, and it must be remem-
bered that another poor country, Italy
is also in the field as a beet-sugar pro-
Queer. They depend largely upon the
success of their operations upon their
exports of the article. If they cannot
export, they cannot consume their pro-
duct and the final result will be restric-
ton of the area of production. That
is plain. This win in many cases Grip
pie the land holding Glasses. and in
some cases ruin them, while the labor
ers who have been receiving the very
lowest modicum of wage, and who,
even now, are barely able to keep body
and soul together, will be thrown out
Of work entirely. There are the ele-
ments of Argrarian outrage already
prepared, within sight and only re-
quiring a match to set them in blaze.
Now as to ourselves. Man is pro
verbally selfish, and does not in the
Hawaiian Islands care very much what
may be happening in central Europe,
unless it affects his own particular in
terests. Will this great depression in
beet sugar affect us? The commercial
relations of the world are so intertwin-
ed that you cannot have a depression
in one part without it's having its effect
upon another If the price of beet SUI
gar goes down to the very lowest notch,
in spite of protective duties it must
affect our own sugar market which Is
our own country. When a set of coun-
tries have overproduced, they are ready
TO almost give their product away and
the only way to protect our own cane
and beet industries is to raise the tariff
so as to keep out what is really an UNI
commercial product, that is a product
which has not been produced by lessen
ed cost of production, but by fortui-
tous circumstances, product, in fact,
which is thrown like bankrupt stock
upon the market.
What is happening in central Europe,
therefore very much interests us, be-
cause a fall in sugar would very seri-
ously affect our interests. We should
therefore watch the future very anX-
iOusIV