New Iberia enterprise and independent observer. (New Iberia, La.) 1902-1944, 1902-04-19

Information was received mt tho
Board of Trade to-day concerning Il
deal in rice that may cause loss
of hundreds of thousands of dollars
in duties to the Federal govern
ment and to practically cut off all
sales of the recent crop OF Louis
lana, even at present low prices, or
compel the planters to dispose OF
what remains of their crops at low
figures It also seems that the pros
pectlve deal is so great in its scope
that the sales Of next years crop
may bo seriously affected.
The deal is similar to that en-
gineered by the American Sugar
Refining company and the specnla-
tors who piled up great stocks of
sugar in Cuba, believing that they
could have tho duty abolished.
Just what happened at Washington
in this matter is Of too recent date
to need repeating.
This time far seeing importers
and spectators of New York and
London are shipping cargo after
cargo of rice into tho Danish West
Indies, where there is no duty on
that cereal. i.ice is being stored
there in quantities.
The spectators seem to have re-
ceived inside information that tho
treaty for the sale Of the Danish
West Indies be ratified by the
I.audthing, which was in session
at Copenhagen yesterday, and also
the knowledge that duties on i'm
ports from the islands to the United
States will either be cut very low
or abolished altogether.
According to the information re-
ceived to-day, the plan is to ship
| all of this rice into the United
States as soon as tho duties are
cut. All of the shipments to the
islands have been made in secret,
the facts just leaking ont.
Just what tho deal means to the
rice producing states is shown best
by the figures relating to duties
and the prices for which domestic
rice is sold.
The duty in grades equal to
what is known locally as clean
Honduras, and domestic Japan, is
two cents pound, and on the
same grades rough one aud three
quarter cents, This is a high duty
aud might work hardship in
some quarters, were it not a fact
that, dispite the difference In
wages, the Louisiana planters get
Ifor the same grades clean, only
from two to i've and a half cents q
Ipound.
| At these quotations the planters
make very little profit.
| Consequently, il the duty wer'
| to be removed on the vast quaint
ties Of rice that the spectators ar'
endeavoring to bring into tb'
United States, through the Danisl
West Indes, the rice could be solt
for less than the Louisiana cereal
| The difference in the price OF tn
Louisiana product and that Of tn
East is due entirely to labor. Il
China, Japan and elsewhere, coolie
are employed in growing and pre-
pairing rice for market at from
three to FIVE cents a day. Labor il
Louisiana cost from ~ 90 TO $l.2
la day. The coolie will do three
quarters as much work as Tn
negro. Ocean freights are so 10,
that the cost is about one seventy
fifth Of a cent pound to brin
rice to this country from China
THE result is that the Louisian
planter will be undersold fron
fifty to seventy.fve per cent. on al
rice brought in
The matter was turned over to }
Locke Brcaux, chairman OF tn
! Board of Trade, who has writer
to Washington. Should the lette
have no effect, a committe may la
the matter before congress.