Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1914-08-01
IN HOUSE Of REPRESENTATIVES,
HEDRIVES HOME STRIKING FACTS

I competition eliminated, will not sell
its product at the highest price il can
| demand.
The refiners have increased their
margin from $044 On February II,
1914, to $0.S94 on June %, 1914, which
increase amounts to $0454. The re,
finers' margin has been increased
1892 per cent.
This great change in the refneTs'
margin is proof that the refiners sell
their sugar at the highest price they
can obtain In February domestic
sugar was On the market, and compe-
/ ton forced the refners to accept a
small profit | do not believe any
ell-'nformed man will contend that
1.-The. domestic industry will be able IN
| exist under free trade, and with all
domestic competition wiped out the
! refiners can and will certainly in
crease their profits and absorb the
, tariff reduction. The benefit to the
consumers, If there is any benefit at
all. will certainly be insignificant The
cFiDDling OF the domestic, sugar in
dustry is gross mistake. The tariff
reduction on sugar can not be iusti-
fed. T.. ...@. 49,.
While the seahoard refners and
their free sugar allies among the Dem
ocrats claim that the Underwood bill
has resulted in cheaper sugar, they
conceal the essential facts from the
people. ....
Nv CHEAPER sugar they expect the
public to believe that the sugar found
on the breakfast table Of the Ameri.
can people is cheaper since the I'm.
derwcod bill passed than 1t was be-
fore. f. "' -.
As matter CT fact, the cheaper
sugar has been confined exclusively to
raw sugar grown nv the American
farmers and to graduated sugar turn
ed out by the beet sugar factories and
better equipped sugar houses in Louis
lana in connection with the trust.
This is strikingly shown by the
movement of the sugar market during
the last month that the old rates were
in effect and the first month following
the oneration of the sugar schedule Of
the Underwood bill-February and
March, 1914. Turing this period there
YVES a net decline Of 0.47 cent in raw
sugar on the New York market, while
graduated, the lowest grade of re.
fined sugar. declined only OLAF cent,
the excess In the decline of raws over
graduated being 0.S23 cent, suffered
by the American farmers. Since
March. however. after the domestic
crop had gone of the market, the re-
liners advanced their price on granu-
lated sugar 0.441 cent, and now the
price of graduated sugar is 0.224
cent higher than In February. before,
the tarfff reduction became effective.
But this was not the worst feature
me campaign for free sugar. was. con-.
ducted by the fefiners under the pre-
tense that they would cheaper the
higher grades Of table sugars to the
masses of the people, and that the
grades known as dominoes and cut.
loaf sugars, the grades of table sugars
used for sweetening tea and coffee,
would be cheaper by cents pound
following the removal of the duty. IA
The trade reports show that while
the refiners beat down the prices of
raw sugar on the eve of the tariff
changes, entirely absorbing the re-
duction, as they put il and also re-
duced the price of granulated in order
to injure the beet people and those
planters who were competing with
them In that grade, they made abso.
ldtely no reduction in the price OF
crystal dominoes or eutloaf sugar
These are the fancy grades In which
the beet factories and the Louisiana
planters do not compete. The trust
through selling them at exorbitant
prices, has been able to pile up mil
lions OF dollars of profit annually.
The market quotations of Willett &
Gray show that crystal dominoes were
quoted without a break from January
s to April 80 at 6.75 cents to 7.25 cents
pound, according to packing. Cut
loaf sugar was quoted at sos cents dur
ing the same period without break.
The depression has been in raw sugar
and the low grades, and the only loss
es have been sustained by the Ameri-
can farmer and the federal treasury.
The trust has maintained its fancy
prices for fancy grades unimpaired by
the tariff.
The loss to the federal treasury has
been officially shown by two letters
from the department of commerce I'M
der date Of April 10 and May Is, re-
spectiveiy. These letters state that
during the month of March, the first
month the new sugar rates were IN
operation, the government sustained a
loss Of $2.479,45S.62, while during the
second month April, the government
sustained further loss of 81, 951, 1891,
q total of $4,4S0. 657.53 lost to the Uni
ted States treasury and absorbed en-
tirely by the sugar refiners.
1t will thus be seen that the re-
finers, through the operation of the
new tariff, have within the space Of
two months recovered at the expense
of the federal treasury S4,500,000, or
little more than the entire sum that
the federal government forced them to
disgorge by reason of their crooked
weighing and other methods of petty
thieving. These odious practices, 1T
will be remembered, caused the attor-
ney-general OF the United States to de-
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