The Republican journal., 1909-05-13
Consumers Invoke Taft Against Sugar
Trust.

Hundred Million Dollars May Be Saved In
Peoples Penny Tribute-Trust Tariff Tax
Two Cents A Pound.
New YORK, May 10th. Urging Presi-
dent Taft to loosen the tariff tentacles
with which the Sugar Trust octopus
squeezed from all American consumers
over 500, 900, 900 last year, the customers
Of 100000 small grocers throughout the
land have sent to the White House from
this city final plea for real reduction
on this universal household necessity
which congress has refused in the face of
petitions from the people of every State
in the Union. Through the Committee
Of Wholesale Grocers, which has been
formed here to assist in obtaining
cheaper sugar for consumers through re-
duction of duties on raw and refined
sugar, the heads and housewives of over
100, 900 American families have recorded
their support of this movement, which
the official figures show can result in an
annual saving of So to every household in
the land Only the intervention of the
President can save the wage earners of
the entire country from paying tribute
at breakfast, dinner and supper to the
powerful trust which has saddled sugar
on the plain people with burden of duty
eight times that on diamonds, it is declar-
ed.
Reminding the President that besides
the little brown sugar growers of the
Philippines there are 100000 900 men,
women and children on his home CONT
nent in the grasp Of the sugar trust, this
petition of the American consumers asks
for square deal in reducing the huge 80
per cent tariff, on the basis of which
fully two cents is tackled to the price of
each pound of this kitchen staple, of
which 1924, 79l tons were imported for
consumption last year. In forwarding to
Washington this mass of requests from
their customers for cheaper sugar, the
grocers declare that their interest in
increased consumption is identical with
that of the consumer, and cite the recor-
ded statement of the Independent refners
that they require no protection and favor
the admission of both raw and refined
sugar entirely free of duty. The fact
that the sugar trust recently sold for eX-
port large quantities of sugar at almost
two cents pound less than it was offered
to American consumers is also called to
that the trust can refine sugar without
protection much better than every house
wife can afford to pay the tariff tax Of
fully twenty cents every time she fills
her ten pound sugar jar.
Included in the thousands of petition
ers against this trust tax on their daily
food are hundreds of grangers and farm
ers who have FASTENED to register their
protest over the counters of the village
groceries in every section of the country.
Ten millions Of farmers to-day pay two
cent tax on every pound of sugar for
their households, they point out, solely to
give bounty to less than a hundred
thousand farmers who are engaged in
raising sugar beets for the trust which is
known to control the domestic product
Though this is the greatest fruit-growing
country in the world, it is further assert
ed, the stunning of the canning and pre-
serving industry through lack Of cheap
sugar to-day robs the farmers Of what
might be an enormous demand for their
fruit.