The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1906-09-30

OF this amount there was ad-
mitted, free of duty:
Long Tons.
From domestic beet............. 220,722
! From domestic cane Louisiana.
Texas. etcD Observation-Disclosures 34522
From Hawaii NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.. 3I6,491
From Porto Observation-Disclosures. 124,92S
Total ......... ...............l,o56 bog
The total amount of sugar admitted
free was about forty per cent of the
total consumption.
The total value may be safely placed
/ at $4,000 Geo.
AMERICAN BEET SUGAR INDUS
TRY
At the present time the production of
beet sugar is carried on in thirteen
states Of the Union. There are at
present in operation f1fty-five factories
with twelve new plants in course of
construction for the coming campaign.
Much of the late development in beet
sugar is in the irrigated regions of the
west on desert lands reclaimed at great
expense.
The operation of these factories gives
employment to a vast number of grow
eFS, a pIo-
portion of the population of the states
where the industry is carried on. The
average profits of the beet business are
moderate. under normal sugar prices,
but have been sufficient to encourage
a steady development of the industry
during the past several years.
The output has increased from 70, 944
tons in 1900 to $4,000 tons estimated
for 1906 This shows a steady growth
although not alarming for Hawaii as it
has not kept pace with the increase of
American consumption.
EFFECT OF CUBAN TREATY
When the Cuban treaty went into eff
feet the industry received great set
back. Eighty-six new factories We're
projected at that time. representing
total investment of $50,000,000, all of
which but six were abandoned.
If the reduction of twenty per cent
in the Cuban tariff had SO detrimental
an effect on the industry, it is easy to
conceive what the result would be II
the entire duty was removed.
DOMESTIC CANE PRODUCTION.
The bulk of the 334,522 tons of cane
sugar produced on the mainland in 1905
was grown in Louisiana-at cost of
not less than 21s cents per pound.
While Louisiana production has about
reached it's limit there are great possi-
bilities in Texas and Florida, espe-
cially in the latter state with the pro-
posed draining of the Everglades.
But domestic production can never
begin to compete in cost with Cuba.
Porto Rican sugar was admitted free
of duty into the United States on the
ground that the state Of the industry
was such that it could not be continued
without the benefit of the American
tariff
THE DUTY OF CONGRESS.
Now the annexation of Cuba would
mean the humiliation of all of these
interests in the course of few years.
It would be a question of life or death
to the cane and beet sugar and tobacco
industries carried on extensively In at
least twenty-six different states and
territories of the Union, having rep
resentation of over half of the United
States Senate and a large representa-
ton in the lower house.
Is it possible that these representa-
tives in Congress will sit idly by and
let their constituents be utterly ruined
in order to give protection to Cuba as
the result of a revolutionary farce in
stigated by a few planters and specu-
lators?
TOBACCO INDUSTRY WOULD BE
PARALYZED
In addition to the above enormous
interests is the tobacco growing in
dustry of the United States extending
over twenty-five states of the Union,
of which twelve do not produce sugar.
The present annual production of to-
bacco in the United States is about
four hundred thousand tons. represent
ing a value for the raw material of
s55 600, 900. to say nothing of the great
cigar industries at Key West and other
points on the mainland.
This industry would probably be
paralyzed to a greater degree than
sugar by the remission of the heavy
tariff existing at the present time and
direct competition with the tobacco
fields of Cuba.
ENORMOUS LOSS OF REVENUE.
Another very serious problem which
would confront Congress would be the
loss of revenue incident to Cuban an
nexation The total revenue collected by
custom houses in the United States
during the fiscal year ending June 80,
1905. was 1882, 060,52 The total revenue
collected from sugar imported from
Cuba was approximately $SS,0OO,0 900
during the calendar year of 1905. The
total amount collected from all foreign