The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-02-18
SUGAR TRUST EXISTS SAYS
 THE HARDWICK COMMITTEE
Report Makes No Recom- mendatiOn as to Remedial
 Legislation
REPORT SIGNED BY
 ENTIRE COMMITTEE
Severely Condemns Promoters of the Sugar Trust--Havemeyer Given
 Credit for the Organization. Charge Law Violation

Credit for the Organization.
 Charge Law Violation Washington. February IT. - The Hardwlclx sugar trust investigating committee, after many weeks of open hearings here and in New York and almost continuous work since last May, reported to the House today that sugar trust exists. The report, which is signed by all the members of the committee, republicans as well as deni- ocrats, makes no recommendation whatever as to how the alleged trust and those responsible for 1t shall he dealt with, suggesting that this phase of the situation is one to be handled | by standing committee of the House | As to the effect of the combine on the cost of sugar to the consumer, the committee expresses the belief that monopoly keeps the price up, but makes no attempt to fix accurately the extent to which responsible price that might exist under competitive condi- tions are exceeded.
 Condemns Promoters The report severely condemns the oroginal promoters Of the sugar trust. but describes the 1S.oOO present owners of the stock of the American Sugar Refining company as "innoeent pur- | chasers" of profitable stock which was unloaded on them by the few men who organized the sugar trust.
 Henry O. Havemeyer Is given credit for the organization of the combination, and of him the report says:
 That this colossal speculation has come through with success and today stands on an established business basis is due to the genius of it's architect rather than to any of the restraining powers of society expressed in law"
 We find strikingly developed in ths sugar industry several evils" says the committee, aside from the primary one or stirling competition, which seem to demand careful consideration and rem edial legislation by Congress.
 As this matter belongs to the jur- isdiction of n great standing commit tee of the House, your special commute tee will not, as n committee. under- take to present a bill on the subject or to further elaborate the idea herein suggested, beipg confident that the ea- tifs subject matter will receive careful and Forni,t consideration by tho stand Ing committee having Jurisdiction thereof
 Review Prosecutions Early in the report the prosee ,itons of the sugar industry by the federal gov ernment are reviewed The organization or the first sngar combine in lss7 10 taken up and the two actions of the gov ernment set forth. or the suit the gov ernment brought against the trust in Mo- vember, 1910, the report says:
 Tt is but simple justice to say that th.s bill seems to be both carefully and ably drawn 10 be comprehensive and well adapted to he purpose at which it aims It is now pending in the circuit court The committee charges that since the organization Of the American Sugar Rs- inning company in 1891 1t repeatedly vio- lated the Sherman law. At the time 1t was chartered the Sherman law had been in force more than six months, and both It's organization and existence coupled with it's methods of doing business, was. as the testimony seems to indicate to your committee, palpable and continuing yio- lation of the sherman law"
 No Serious Prosecutions The report continues: And yet no seri- ous attempt was made tprior to Noyem- Der, l9lO) to invoke the civil remedies provided by the anti-trust law against the corporation. It is also to be noted that tho government has not, even up to the present time. so far as has appeared, made any effort to enforce the penal provisions of the Sherman law Twenty-one actions in the organization | and operation of the sugar trust which the committee believes were violations of the Sherman law are enumerated and ftot. ,t,,r. Al. Sugar Refining company and discussing 1 it's alleged over-capitalizaton and sale to it's present owners. the report says These salient facts indicate with su- preme emphasis the basic condition of the problem uncovered by this committee that we have in this government ample ma chinery for rigid inquiry into the property of these 1s.0o0 people and for suits to decompose the property into it's original parts by the destruction of its organiza. ton, but there is no arrangement of gov ernment whatever whereby any one of these 1900 people might have informed himself definitely of the hazards Into which he or she was buying
 Discourages Government
 The report discusses the doctrine of soy- ernment regulation of prices but dis courages 1t. saying, "competition and n- dividuality are the great remedies that have been sufficient through all the ages to protect us from the evils that now threat We are not yet ready to write an epitaph over eithers
 The committee estimated that s2 .39 per cent of the sugar business is controlled by the combine. It also finds that the "trust' has g large interest in the beet sugar end of the business, with it's strongest com petitor. Arbuckle Brothers. there Is said 70 be condition of armed neutrality"
 Refining Margin
 The refining margin on sugar has reached trihe over s2 cents hundred pounds. according to the report. This was the lowest during the Arbuckle war in 1899, 70 cents. and prior to the or eanization of the trust in 1887 was q 25. The committee gives credit to the trust for reducing the cost of sugar. but re- ports that in 1870 sugar cost 1872 cents a pound and in 1911 the price of sugar was 497c pound. It reports that in 1910 the worlds supply of sugar was E0oo.00o tons, of which 5o.5 per cent was beet sugar
 The largest sugar consuming countries of the world were the United Kingdom ,s6.3 pounds per capital. and the United ! =.