The Washington times., 1909-06-15
MORE TARIFF HELP FOR THE
SUGAR TRUST.

Senator Bristow has been finding out
vast number of interesting things
about the methods of legislative leger-
demain whereby the Sugar trust is
voted concealed benefits, His elucida-
ton of the Dutch standard trick was
complete; and now he has fallen foul
of the series of jokers in the Senate
committee provisions relating to the ad-
mission of raw sugar, free of duty,
from the Philippines.
The committee provision proposes to
admit without duty 100000 tons of
raw sugar from the archipelago. That,
OF course, at the outset Is concession
to the Sugar trust OF about S6,0OO,00O
a year, for it gives the trust sugar on
which. if the present duties were main
tained It's tariff tolls would be about
s6,0000O0. That looks bad enough;
but it is palliated with the explanation
that we must do something for the
little brown brothers"
Let's see how it is to be done. On
examination it turns out that Philip
pine raw sugar is OF no use TO any
body in this country except the trust.
It IS so crude that nobody except
the trust is in position 20 refine 1t
and make anything from it. So the
trust Is given the monopoly of Philip
pine raw sugar, and its position as the
only possible buyer viii enable it to
b'sy literally at its own price. The
Sugar trusts own price is always the
lowest buying and the highest selling
price possible. The Filipinos would get
the least measure of benefit the trust
chose 70 give
But, Of course. there is the chance
that the Filipinos would, under the
stimulus Of this encouragement, adopt
more modern methods Of sugar making
and turn out a sugar for which other
refners would bid But no; Senator
Bristow finds that the provision Is care
fully fixed to prevent that The small
producers of sugar are TO get the pref
erenee in the tariff concession; the pro
ducers whose annual business IS so
SMALL THAT THEY COULD NOT
AFFORD To PUT N THE BETTER
MANUFACTURING CONTRIVANCES.
And if some one Of these small makers
should become so enterprising as to put
IN modern machinery and make better
sugar on big scale for the American
market HIS OUTPUT WOULD BE
so LARGE THAT IT WOULD PROB
ABLY BAR HIM FROM THIS MAR
KET IN ORDER To GIVE THE
SMALL PRODUCERS THE FIRST
CHANCE. There is the encourage
ment" this provision gives to better
sugar making methods.
But this Is not all. The measure
further provides that the Philippines
shall impose a tariff on refined sugars
coming into the islands, a tariff at
least as high as the United States
tariff on refined sugar That is, the
Sugar trust would be made the sole
buyer of raw sugar from the islands.
snd also the only concern which could
sell refined sugar To them And the
selling price of the refined sugar would
be as marvelously high as the buying
price of the raw sugar would be low.
Count on the Sugar trust for them.
To summarize. In order to help the
little brown brother it is proposed:
To give the trust remission Of duties
amounting to at least s6,O00O00 a
year.
To everlastingly prevent the methods
of sugar manufacture in the islands
being improved.
To give the trust the exclusive mar
ket Of the islands for refined sugar.
To turn over to the trust the add
tional 100000 tons year of free raw
sugar, with which to beat down the
price already shsmefully Iow-whieh
it pays the Cuban brother for his raw
sugar.
To give the trust this additional
clubbing power over the beet sugar in
terests in this country, if any Of them
should chance to develop enough vigor
and independence 10 make an honest
struggle for a legitimate business
standing.
Now, that means in truth that the
Sugar trust is to get about 30 per cent
Of the benefits BY this free Philippine