Anadarko daily democrat. [volume] (Anadarko, Oklahoma) 1901-190?, 1902-03-06
HE BEL SUGAR INDUSTRY.

country appeared on the editorial page
OF the New York Evening Post of De
cember 18th. 1901, aud as every house
hold in the land is Interested in sugar
the article viii be Of universal interest.
The Evening Post bids the hoartiest
welcome TO every American industry
that can stand on It's own bottom and
make its way without leaning on the
poor rates. Among these self-support-
Ing Industries, we are glad to know, 10
the production OF beet sugar At all
events it was such two years ago. We
publish elsewhere a letter written In
1899, and signed by Mr.. OXnard anC
Mr.. Cutting. the chiefs Of this indIs
try on the eastern side of the Rocky
Mountains showing that this was the
happy condition of the trade at that
time. II parties masquerading az beet
sugar producers are besieging the Pres
ident and Congress at this moment,
and pretending that they will he ruined
II Cuban sugar Is admitted for six
months at half the present rates of
duty, their false prctenccs ought to be
exposed
Cutting was probably written for the
purpose of inducing the farmers of the
Mississippi valley 10 so more largely
into the cultivation OF heets for the
sugar factories This was a laudable,
motive or telling the truth and show
Ing the large profits which awaited
both the beet grower and the manufac-
turer II the industry were persevering
iy and intolligently prosecuted To this
end IT was pointed out that farmers
could clear S65 per acre by cultivating
beets, and might even make 800. But
in order to assure the cultlvator that.
he would not he exposed to reverses,
by possible changes in the tariff, they
proceeded to show that the industry
stood in no need of protection.
"The beet sugar industry, these gen
tlemen say Stands on as firm a basis
as any business in the country" They
point out the fact-a very important
one-that their product comes out as a.
finished article refined and granulat-I
ed. 1t is not like cane-sugar grown.
In the West India Islands. a black and.
offensive paste, which must be carried.
In wagons tC the seaboard and thence,
by ships to the United States, where.
after another handling, il is put
through IA costly refinery, and then
shipped by rail to the consumer. who
may possibly be in Nebraska alongside
beet sugar factory which turns out
the refined and granulated article at
one fell swoop. Indeed, the advan-
tages of the producer of beet sugar for
supplying the domestic consumption
are very great. We have no doubt that
Messrs Oxnard and Cutting are within
bounds when they say that sugar can
be produced here cheaper than it can
be in Europe The reasons for this
arc that
THE sugar industry is, after all,
merely an agricultural one. We can
undersell Europe in all other crops
and sugar is no exception
1T follows as naturally as the max
ing of flour from wheat II we can
produce wheat cheaper than Europe,
then naturally we cal produce flour
cheaper, as we do,
But the writers of tbs letter do nol
depend upon a-priori reasoning to prove
that they can make sugar at Il profit
without tariff protection. They point to
the fact that under the Mckinley tariff
of 1890 when sugar was free OF duty.
the price of the article was 4 cents per
pound Yet net profit of 80 per ton
was made by the hcet-Sugar factories
under these conditions. not counting
any bounty on the home production of
sugar They boast that they made this
proht while working under absolute
free trade and they have right to be
proud of this result of their skill end
induatry. Many beet-sugar factories
had been started in bygone years back
in the sixties and seventies of the nine.
teenth century, and had failed because
the projectors did not understand the
business. Since then great progress hai
been made, both here and abroad, il
the cultivation and manipulation of tn,
beet. What was impossible thirty year,
ago Is now entirely feasible. The in
dustry is already ON a solid and enGur
ing basis. There are factories in tn
United states these gentlemen tell II
in their letter. capable of using $4,000
tons OF boets per annum at profit o
So pey ton. and this would make
profit Of Sl.050,O0O as the income Il
be earned under absolute free trade.
at must he plain to readers OF thi
letter. signed by the captains OF tn
beet-sugar Industry, that the people 4
N,sI,, "a l.,