The Honolulu republican. [volume] (Honolulu, T.H.) 1900-1902, 1901-11-20
Sugar and Our Islands.

From the Chicago InteT-Ocean
Due consideration of the facts out
lined by C. a Champion in the current
Forum ought TO save the Republican
party and Congress from a Porto Rio
an squabble over the PHILIPPINES and
Cuba The supposed interests OF our
beet-sugar growers prevented US for
nearly two years from doing "our plain
duty" by Porto Rico Yet that was
merely a preliminary skirmish. and a
tariff on Porto Rican sugar vas de-
manded chiefly as a warning prece-
dent" The real battle will be over
Cuba and the Philippines, and 1t viii
at least begin in the coming Congress.
The beet-sugar interests contend
that they are building UP great in
dustry." They point TO their mills IN
fifteen States and an increase in pro-
duct Of nearly IS per cent last sea
son. Their contentious were summed
up recently by Secretary Wilson when
he asserted that in "a short time. if
not interfered with By legislation" oar
beet growers would produce all tho
sugar We use and render us indie
pendent OF foreign countries"
The most superficial study of stat
istics, as Mr.. Champion well observes,
will suffice TO show the absurd
ity of the claim" Our thirty beet
sugar mills last season produced H.
42S tons. an increase over the pre-
yious year of 81 ,02S tons. But in the
same time our consumption of sugar
increased 10000 tons. or five times
as fast as our production To meet
the growth of consumption in one year
we must instantly double our present
number of mills. To produce all the
SUGAR We now consume would require
at least 1000 mills. of capacity equal
to those We now have.
To build these mills would require
from 500. 100000 to s300000.000. To
supply them with beets would require
2 200 900 acres of land and the labor
of $500 900 men during the growing
season. We could probably find the
money and the land. but the labor.
especially that of the chemists and
skilled artisans required in the mills,
could not be improvised. Years, even
decades. are required to train the men.
In the light of these facts. the utter
impossibility of soon growing enough
beet sugar for our needs is self-evi-
dent.
Even if we should at once throw
our market wide open to our Islands,
they could not supply us with all our
sugar for many years. Cuba's pro
duct this year will not exceed IOO,OOO
tons. The nature of the industry pre-
vents its rapid expansion. Even u
Cuba and the Philippines could at
once double their product. which Is
impossible. they would not half I'LL the
great American sugar bowl.
Mr.. Champion admits that to throw
open our market at once to Cuban
and Philippine sugar would destroy
our domestic industry. But We can at
least give them more favorable terms
than we give to foreign sugar. and
still leave to our beet sugar growers
all the advantage they can reasona-
bly, claim. The question before Con-
gress may be summed up in two
sentences:
Shall we. for the sake of an indus
try manifestly incapable of supplying
our needs. continue to buy the greater
part of our sugar in Europe and doom
Cuba and the Philippines 10 stagna-
ton and poverty? Or shall we strike
a fair balance between our home and
island sugar growers. enable both to
prosper, and keep among our own
people an increasing proportion of the
money We now pay to Europe for SUI
gar?
This is the alternative before Con
gress. From a purely selfish stand
point of national interest. leaving aside
any question of our duty to the insular
peoples. Congress ought to have no
difficulty in making a choice.
To give the sugar of our new isl
ands at least preference in our mar
ket will enable them to prosper. will
make sugar cheaper. viii not serious
" hurt any home industry. and will
Increase more. rapidly than any other
policy our independence of Europe.
And these are certainly the objects
We desire TO attain.