The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-04-26
TAFT ASKED TO ACT
CoUNTRY,s CONSUMERS INVOKE
HIM AGAINST SUGAR TRUST.
Hundred Million Dollars May De Saved
I'm Peoples Penny Tribute--Trust
Tariff TAX Two Cents
Per Pound.

New York, April zo.-topeciaAl-
Urging President Taft to loosen the
tariff tentacies with which the sugar
trust octopus squeezed from all Amer
fcan consumers over 500. 100000 last
year, the customers of 100000 small
grocers throughout the land sent to
the White House from this city today
final plea for q real reduction on this
universal household necessity which
Congress has refused In the face OF PEE
titions from the people Of every state
in the Union.
Through the Committee Of Wholesaie
Grocers, which has been formed here
to assist In obtaining cheaper sugar
for consumers through reduction OF du-
ties on raw and refined sugar. the
heads and housewives Of over 100000
American families have recorded their
support OF this movement. which the
officIa1 figures show can result In an
annual saving OF IS to every household
in the land. Only the Intervention OF
the President can today save the wage
earners of the entire country from
paying tribute at breakfast. dinner and
supper TO the powerful trust which has
saddied sugar on the plain people with
4 burden or duty neighf times that on
diamonds, IL Is declared.
Reminding the President that be-
sides the little brown sugar growers Of
the Philippines there are 100000
men, women and children-.on his home
continent In the grasp Of the sugar
trust. this petition OF the American
consumers asks for a square deal In
reducing the huge so per cent tariff. on
the basis Of which fully Q cents is
tackled to the price OF each pound of
this kitchen staple OF which 2.2s4.7s1
tons were Imported for consumption
last year. In forwarding to Washing
ton this mass Of requests from their
customers for cheaper sugar, the gro
GERS declare that their interest In in
ceased consumption Is Identical with
that of the consumer. and cite the re-
corded statement of the Independent
refiners that they require no protection
and favor the admission OF both raw
ana refined sugar entirely free Of duty.
The fact that the sugar trust has re-
Gently. sold for export large quantities
of sugar at almost cents pound less
than II was offered to American con-
sumers Is also called to the attention
Of President Taft as proof that the
trust can refine sugar without protec-
ton much better than every housewife
can afford to pay the tariff tax of fully
20 cents every time abe fills her ten
pound sugar Jar.
Included In the thousands OF petit
-
daily food are hundreds Of oranges and
farmers who have FASTENED 20 register
their protest over the counters of the
village groceries in every section of the
country. Ten millions Of farmers to-
day pay q. cent tax on every pound
Of sugar for their households, they
point out. solely to give bounty to
less than a 10o000 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. 1t Is further asserted. the stunt
ing Of the canning and preserving an
dustry through lack OF cheap sugar to-
day robs the farmers OF what might be
an enormous demand for their fruit
Just s142.72s,s47 could have been
saved to the housekeepers Of this coufl-
try last year without the tariff tax
which the sugar trust would perpetuate
in the Aldrich bill, 1t is shown by fig-
ures taken from government statistics.
That sugar. the daily necessity Of the
plain people, is now scheduled in a
transparent joker to continue at an 80
per cent tariff rate, while champagne
is to be taxed only IS per cent auto
mobiles IS per cent, furs IS per cent
and paintings and statuary 20 per cent
is declared by the consumers In their
petition to President Taft to be a class
burden and discrimination we'll worth
his looking into at this time.