The Greenville journal. [volume] (Greenville, Ohio) 1850-1918, 1913-03-20
TRUST WARS ON
OHIO PRODUCERS
Control Of Market Threatened
by Beet Industry.
COMPETITION CUTS PRICES.

Rsfiners Who Have Been Forced to Re-
pay Government $500, 900 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 rehners, hut 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 Q912l3l was much
larger than at any time since the cul-
tivation of sugar beets was taken up
by American farmers The output is
estimated ut 100000 tons, or enough to
supply practically the entire population
of all the states west of the Mississippi
if it were confined entirely to that sec
ton. 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
a point at which the cane refiners
could not compete. For several months
domestic sugar was sold throughout
this territory ut from 80 to so points
below the seabourd price of the inn
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 refinerles.
| Two of the big refineries on the At
lantic seaboard closed down entirely,
and others We're put on reduced time.
| 1t is agreed by trade experts that the
competition of the domestic grown
beet product made sugar an average OF
half a cent pound lower than it
| otherwise would have been and that 1t
will have the effect of keeping prices
low throughout 1913
Under examination before the con
gressional committee appointed to in
vestigate the sugar industry e. f. At
kins acting president of the American
Sugar Refining company, popularity
known as the sugar trust. declared that
the refiners must operate at 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, Th"
other leading retiners made similar ad
missions. With the rapid increase in
the output of beet sugar the period dur
ing which refiners 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 continuel
domination of sugar prices throughout
the United States. created by the rapid
expansion of the home sugar industry.
that has caused the refinerS to open
war on the beet growing farmers OF
Ohio and other states and upon the
manufacturers Of beet sugar who get
their supplies from these farmers
With the admissions of the sugar beet
growers and manufacturers themselve;
and the statements of such agricultural
authorities as Secretary of Agriculture
Wilson that it is impossible at the pres
: ent time for American farmers ant
manufacturers, with the higher wage
and higher prices for beets which they
pay, to compete against the sugar o
the tropics grown by yellow and blacl
labor without a duty on the latter prod
4 uct. the refners have adopted the policy
a of concentrating their efforts upon al
attempt to secure the reduction or re
I moval of this tariff duty in an attemp
to destroy the home industry before
becomes fully established To accom-
plish this they have spread broadcas
the claim that such a course will resul
in q saving to the consumer and haV
. employed agents to induce people I
write letters to congressman advocat
ing free sugar.
n That the reiners propose to max
this an attack in which no quarter wi
6 be offered to the American farmer an
manufacturer is shown by the faC
,. that they are willing to forego the aC
vantage which they now derive froI
e being able to buy their raw supple
. from Cuba under the reciprocity az
at a third of a cent a pound cheape
~ than they can be brought in from an
other part Of the world.
|. For several years this provision,
addition to the excess duty of ~ cent
!. on refined sugar above the raw sugs
duty, has given them an adyantas
II over foreign refners which made
impossible Cor the latter to enter Il
= American market. Not content wit
w the. advantages thus legally conferrt
upon them, however. both the sugi
)r trust and the so called independent r
flners resorted to numerous devices
ef cheat the government out of the rev
, nue. due it under the law. The ~
" amount of these frauds never has be-
Il diyulged. but under the spur Of feder
prosecution nearly $350O,0O0 was !
az turned to the government. and a suit
" still pending against rbe Federal r
] nning company on the same charge