The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1913-06-25
AFTER THE LOBBY
BELIEVE GIGANTIC SCHEME has
BEEN FOUND
some PRIVATE papers

Trail Followed for Two Weeks Leads
to Washington Headquarters of
Beet Sugar Industry-Aleged An
ti-Free Sugar Campaign With
Newspapers.
The trail of the "lobby" the SEN
ate has been following for more
than two weeks led Tuesday into
the private files of the men in charge
Of the Washington Offices of the Unit
ed Safes Beet Sugar Industry, the
leading Instrument CT the campaign
against free sugar, and by originals
of letters and telegrams, and what
purported to be copies of others, de-
veloped testimony of what appeared
to be an attempt at far reaching
campaign to create public sentiment
against free sugar through the col
umns Of individual newspapers and
the facilities Of press associations.
By subpoena duces tecum the COM
mittee got possession of copies Of let
ters and kilograms of Clearance G.
Hamlin, Colorado Springs, COL,
newspaper owner and beet sugar
man. in charge of the Washington
Offices of the American Beet Sugar
Association, two years ago. The
papers included what purported to
be carbon copies of letters, unsigned,
but furnished as genuine by Harry A.
Austin, clerk in the Offices Of Tru-
man G. Palmer, representative Of the
United States Beet Sugar Industry.
The Industry" succeeded the "asso-
citation" about two years ago, and
Palmer succeeded Hamlin in charge.
charge.
Some Of the letters told of Hamlin
travelling to the large cities, giving
out interviews; others, written to
Washington, indicated that he was
trying to circulate matter in defence
Of sugar duty through newspapers.
The Associated Press, and other chan
nels, to Offset what he thought mis-
leading statements put out by sugar
refners. The text indicated that his
attempts at publicity had not always
been as successful as ne had hoped.
Other letters referred to a plan
launched by Hamlin to have the
large beet sugar companies take ov-
er $4,000 in bonds Of the Chicago
Inter-Ocean. Other letters disclosed
attempts to interest big railroad sys-
TENS in the anti-free sugar campaign
and to have professors Of agricultur-
al colleges appear before committees
of congress with arguments favor
able to the beet sugar men.
None of the letters disclosed that
the railroads had been interested or
that the great news agencies had
been extensively used or that the In
ter-Ocean bonds had been bought.
Letters introduced did show that the
sugar men had been dissatisfied with
their efforts to get interviews" car
ried by The Associated Press. Austin
and a sergeant-at-arms Of the Sen
ate brought a big box Of the tele-
grams and letters to the committee
room Tuesday afternoon, the COM
mittee suspended the examination of
witnesses and Chairman Overman,
Senators Reed and Walsh began
reading them into the record.
Two kilograms were exchanged be-
tween Hamlin, Senator Clark and
Truman G Palmer. Hamlin's tele-
gram in reply, sent to his uncle, Sen
ator Clark, was given to the commit
tee It said: "Have wire from Pal
mer suggesting retain attorney to
prevent delivery Of my papers to
committee. Austin, on whom SER
vice is made, may have some of my
private correspondence or papers but
so far as I remember there Is moth
ing among them which I would OBJ
ject to being made public"
The correspondence covered much
of 1911 and the early part of 1912,
when the Underwood free sugar bill
was introduced in the House. The
letters produced indicated that Ham
lin had made contracts with news
plate" concerns that furnish matter
to small papers and had urged beet
sugar men in different parts Of the
country to attempt to secure pub
licity in their own localities and
through news agencies. Included in
the mass Of correspondence were let
ters from Aaron Cove, which show.
ed that he had made an extensive
tour for the same purpose.
One letter from the Hamlin file,
written from Washington on Decem-
Der Q, 1911, to Charles B. Warren,
president Of the Michigan Sugar Co.
said in part: "Visited one big town
each day Of my trip and invariably
succeeded IN getting our story IN at
least one Of the leading papers. Of
course some handled it more salts
factorily than others but generally
speaking they all did WELL"
The value of publicity was empha-
sized further in another letter writ
ten at Fargo, n. D., by Cove, to
Hamlin, in Washington. It referred
to an interview that had gone out
which was designated at the car
buckle Interview" and Cove urged
the use Of patent inside" to reach
the country readers.
MANY farmers read those patent
insides," he said when I looked it
up I found that stack Of stuff ev-
cry week was not exorbitant in price
and it sure does get before the vo-
&ore 1;ff1a hv 1iff1o and aatc In -