Daily independent. [volume] (Elko, Nev.) 188?-1915, 1913-06-16

/ Refiners Who Have Been Forced to Re-
pay Government s3,5oo,ooo For Frauds
Now Demand Elimination of Growing
Farm Industry.
For the first time in the quarter CEN
| fury that the sugar trust has been in
existence its domination over the sugar
market Of the United States has been
broken this year, temporarily at least,
according to trade experts. This re-
suit has been accomplished, not by gov
ernment prosecution or through the
competition of other refners. but by
| the increase in the market supply of
sugar grown by American farmers and
manufactured in the seventy-three beet
sugar factories scattered from Ohio to
California
The production of beet sugar during
the present year Q912-13) was much
larger than at any time since the cul-
tivation of sugar beets was taken up
by American farmers. The output is
estimated at 100000 tons. or enough to
supply the trade demands of the popula-
ton of all the states west of the Missis-
sippi if it were confined entirely to that
section. The coming of this sugar upon
the market and the sharp competition
of the beet sugar manufacturers among
themselves put down prices through
out the central and western states to
point ut which the cane refiners
could not compete. For several months
domestic sugar WAS sold throughout
this territory ut from 30 to 90 points
below the SeabOard price of the i'm
ported product. Not only was the for
eign grown sugar driven out of the
west. but for the first time beet sugar
actually invaded the New York market
and undersold the cane product under
the very caves of the trust refineries
Two of the big refineries on the At.
lantic seaboard closed down entirely.
and others were put on reduced time
II is agreed by trade experts that the
competition of the domestic grown
beet product made sugar an average of
half q cent n pound lower than il
otherwise would have been and that 1t
will have the effect of keeping prices
low throughout 1913.
Under examination before the con-
gressionul committee appointed to in
| N'SNiSltt IIit NllSll lilNlUSlIN l.. l.. AZ
| kinS. acting president of the American
Sugar Refining company, popularity
| known as the sugar trust. declared that
| the refiners must operate ut q loss dur.
| ing at least three months of every year
| on account of the competition of beet
| sugar and that this competition was
| becoming more severe every year. The
| other leading rcfinerS made similar ad-
! missions With the rapid increase in
the output of beet sugar the period dur.
| ing which refnerS are unable to con.
troll prices and to operate at their usual
| profit grows steadily longer and points
to the time when they will be unable
| longer. to earn high dividends on their
| heavily watered stocks.
| 1t Is this menace to their continued
| domination of sugar prices throughout
| the United States. created by the raDid
| expansion of the home sugar industry.
| that has caused the refners to open
war on the beet growing farmers of
| Nevada and other states and the
| manufacturers of beet sugar who get
| their supplies from these farmers
| With the admissions of the sugar beet
growers and manufacturers themselves
| and statements Of such agricultural au-
thoritieS as eX-Secretary of Agriculture
| Wilson that 1t is impossible ut the pres.
! ent time for American farmers and
| manufacturers, with the higher wages
and higher prices for beets which they
| pay, to compete against the sugar OF
the tropics, grown by yellow and black
labor, without duty on the latter prod.
uct, the refiners have adopted the policy
Of concentrating their efforts upon an
attempt to secure the reduction or re-
| moval or this tariff duty in an attempt
to destroy the home industry before il
becomes fully established. To accom-
plish this they have spread broadcast
the claim that such course will result
In saving to the consumer and have
employed agents to induce people to
write letters to congressman advocat-
ing free sugar
That the refiners propose to make
this an attack in which no quarter will
be offered to the American farmer and
manufacturers is shown by the fact
that they are willing to forego the ad-
vantage which they now derive from
being able to buy their raw supplies
from Cuba under the reciprocity act
Mt third of cent a pound cheaper
than they can he brought I'm from any
other part Of the world
For several years this provision, in
addition to the excess duty Of ~ cents
on refined sugar above the raw sugar
duty. has given them an advantage
over foreign rcfners which made It
impossible for the latter to enter the
American market. Not content with
the advantages thus legally conferred
upon them, however. both the sugar
trust and the so called independent re.