The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1910-07-24
THE OGDEN SUGAR CASE.

The operations of the local sugar
trust, in combination with the big
Havemeyer sugar trust, are pretty well
known here. 1t is known that this To-
cal trust oppresses the farmers on the
one hand by low prices for sugar beets,
and oppresses the consumer on the
other hand, by extortionate prices for
beet sugar.
II costs the people here six cents and
upwards to buy this sugar; but the
trust will ship its surplus sugar made
here to Chicago and sell it there for
four cents a pound.
This gave bright Ogden merchant
an idea. He could afford to buy this
surplus sugar, as at Chicago and at the
Chicago price, have it delivered TO
him at Ogden, and make more money
by selling it at the current rate than
by buying it from the local trust for
home trade. He would pay the freight
TO Chicago, buy in Chicago, but have
the car with the sugar stopped at Og~
den and save .ollar hundred In the
deal
1t was an ingenious idea, but the
conceiver of it did not reckon with the
ways of the trust. AT first it was re-
ported that the railroads would refuse
TO do what was required of them-re-
ceive freight charges on consignment
of sugar to Chicago, and not haul the
sugar to that city, but deliver it at
Ogden. But this proved erroneous. 1t
was the local trust that baked. 1t
would not consent that the consign"
ment should be delivered In Ogden; it
insisted that the delivery must be In
Chicago, and so the ingenious scheme
was headed off by the strong hand of
arbitrary power The Boise Capital
News tells Of the transaction, as fol-
lows;
The Capital News is advised that its
information relative to the ogden mer-
chant who wanted TO ship carload OF
allowed to take it ont at Ogden before II
had moved foot, thus saving. himself
at least a dollar hundred pounds In the
cost OF the sugar after prepaying full
freight rates to Chicago, was error insofar
as the refusal by the railway company
to let him do this was concerned
1t appears that In making such ship
ment the sugar company, or its whole
sale agent which is the same thing, would
not ship the sugar in the name OF the
merchant purchasing II at all. but would
structions TO the railway company TO
notify the merchant. the real coDsisnee,
upon receipt or the freight and to deliver
1t TO him at the point designated. This.
merchant doing what he wished to do
and thus save his dollar a hundred on
the sugar even after prepayment OF
freight, but it is because the refusal 10
turn the car aside at Ogden. is the re-
fusal OF the sugar company and not that
OF the railway According to correct in
formation now received the railway COM
pany is willing TO turn aside shipments
at any point upon the request OF con-
signees, but such conslgnees would have
to be In possession OF the bill OF lading,
which In this case the sugar company Will
see is not delivered short of Chicago.
Perhaps it Is impossible for railways
to operate under any other rule and pro-
tect themselves, yet the rule plays di-
rectly into the hands Of the trusts hav-
ing commodities TO sell. In this case, 1t
enables the sugar trust TO charge price
greatly in excess of the freight rate to
fully and greatly protected by high
tariff. the very fear OF the reduction OF
which so much as half a cent, caused
the demand to be made OF Idaho's rep
rcsentative In congress that he break his
party's solemn pledge TO the people and
his own promises in order that the trust
be not required to endure the reduction
10 which demand Congressman Hamer
gave willing ear, The corrected facts In
the case make the surrender OF Idaho S
congressman all the more blameworthy
because IT shows all the more plainly how
| abuudantly able the sugar trust is TO take
care Of Itself without the complete sur
render Of all the rights Of the citizens OF
Idaho TO II by their elected representative
ANY remarks concerning the connection OF
the railway company under the original
information would of course. not be ap-
picable,
SO far, so done. But what about
restraint Of tradel 1t seems to us that
| the antitrust law has something both
emphatic and fitting the case like a
glove, 10 say on proposition like this
The originator of the idea involved
should look up his rights under that
law. and sec if indeed the combined
local and general sugar trust has the
right under the law to throttle him in
this way.
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