Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1912-09-07

600. and paw over 100000 in wages and
salaries annually They paid the farmers
some $3.50 600 for beets. and their other
expenses brought their cash outlay the
past year up to over $5o00Go00
Put sugar on the free list and here is
another American industry swept out of
existence This is easilv shown by TIE
report of the Democratic Chairman ct.
w Hardwick of Georgia., of thes COM
mittee which lately investigated the
Sugar Trust. That report, which Is be-
fore me. shows that the average cost OF
making sugar in this country is sS.55 per
hundred pounds; that sugar can be iad
down in Boston or New FORK from for
eSn countries for $3.50 or less pers hun
dred pounds. Sizes per hundred less
than the bare cost of manufacture mere
The hearings before the Hardwick COM
mittee covering some 1900 pages are in
teresting reading. They show that free
sugar means the wiping out of 10000
tons of the beet and cane sugar now
made in this country, or three-fourths of
the product; that with this large amount
taken out OF the market the price ot
sugar must Inevitably be higher than
it is now, that the government will lose
over S50000.0o0 in revenue annually; that
ii must have the revenue and IL IT takes
it off of sugar ii must replace IL by put
ting it ON some other article; that over
S100.00o,0C0 i'm capital and l0,00D laborers
will be thrown out of employments that
thousands of farmers in the west and
south who are raising beets and
sugar cane must change their entire
system of farming and stock up with
machinery adapted to different kind of
crop Then here is another point for
Maine farmers to consider
Where is all this beet sugar produced?
Why: in Michigan, Wisconsin. Idaho
and Colorado the great potato states of
the west Destroy the beet sugar indus
try and what will these farmers raise?
Why; potatoes, sure. before all else.
And if they should put l00,o00000 bushels
of potatoes on to the market, or even
50, 100000 bushels, which they easily can
do instead of the 14o0o0,0co bushels of
beets which they are now raising, that
will mean % cent potatoes in Maine just
as sure as it did two years ago when we
had a surplus. Why reciprocity won't
free potatoes from Canada would not be
a flea bite in comparison to IT.
Mr.. Davis told us here the other day
that free sugar meant a saving to the
people of Maine of $f0oa,0e0 year / do
not know where he got his figures. for
government reports show that the saving
will not be nearly one-half that amount.
But then that statement was fun as
near to the facts as We're the rest of his
statements But 1t would be grand
good thing if the Maine farmers could
save 100000 on sugar and lose Slo,0oeoD
on their potatoes wouldn't 1t? This IS
about on a par with all Democratic
economy and craftsmanship. | might re-
view the whole tariff legislation of the
present Democratic House of Represen-
tatives and show any intelligent man
that 1t is all on the same plane, and
would result in the same disastrous man
ner as II did when they had a free hand
during the four years they We're in power
during the Cleveland administration.
when he had to issue ses2.OOO 600 worth of
bonds to pay his debts, or over si.eote0
a week for every week he held the office.
while during the past year under the
present tariff law We had a surplus of
over 100000
C. e. SMITH.