Connecticut western news., 1918-01-17
hL.IE.E..Gnn SU5An SENT 10 FRohI.oo33 American Price RigidIy Regulated by United Sta.eS Food
 Administration. CONSUMERS HERE PAY Sc. Sugar Cost 35 Gents Pound During Civil War-Refiners' Profits
 Now Curtailcd.
CONSUMERS HERE PAY 9c.

pouHu to the consumer, even though there is a world shortage which has reduced this nations sugar allotment to TO per cent. of normal.
 Through the efforts of the United States food administration the sugar marked has been, regulated as far as the producer refiner and wholesaler is concerned. The food administration has no power to regulate retail prices except by public opinion. Even though more than S5,000 tons of sugar have been shipped to France in the last four months the retail grocer's sugar price is around to S1R cents He should sell this sugar at S1a to 9 cents, the food administration believes, and asks the American housewife to pay no more than this amount.
 Last August when the food admin istration was organized the price of sugar rose suddenly to II cents a pound. During the Civil War sugar cost the consumer 35 cents pound. By regulation of the sugar market and reducing the price to S1s and 9 cents and keeping it from advancing to 20 cents the food administration has saw ed the American public at least $780, 100000 in four months, according to a statement made by Herbert Hoover the other day.
 Tt Is our stern duty to feed the al- lies, to maintain their health and ] strength at any cost to ourselves" MT. Hoover declared. "There has not been, nor will bc as we see 1t, enough sugar for even their present meagre and depressing ration unless they send ships to remote markets for it. If we in our greed and gluttony force them either to further reduce their ration or to send these ships we will have done damage to our abilities to win this war
 "If we send the ships to Java i for 25O,ooo tons of sugar next year 1 we will have necessitated the en1- l ployment of eleven extra ships for one year. These ships-if used in transporting troops-wouId take
 15o 900 to 100000 men to France" Reason for World Shortage.
 As MT. Hoover pointed out, the | United States, Canada and England were sugar importing countries before the war, while France and Italy were very nearly self supporting. The main sources of the worlds sugar supply was Germany and neighboring powers, the West Indies and the East Indies.
 German sugar is no longer available, | as it is used entirely in Germany, which also absorbs sugar of surround ing countries.
 England can no longer buy 100000 long tons of sugar each year from Germany. The French sugar produc- tion has dropped from 750O00 to 21O,- 900 tons. The Italian production has fallen from 21O,000 tons to 75,000 tons. Thus three countries were thrown upon East and West Indian sources for 1,925, ,O0O tons annually to maintain their normal consumption.
 Because of the worlds shipping shortage the allied nations started drawing on the West Indies for sugar; East Indian sugar took three times the number of ships, since the dis | tance was three times as great. Sud- denly the west was called on to fur nish and did furnish 1,420,00O tons of sugar to Europe when 100000 tons year was the pre-war demand. The allies had drawn from Java 100000 tons before the shipping situation be- came acute.
 "In spite of these shipments" MT. ! Hoover stated the other day, the English government in August reduced i the household sugar ration to basis of 24 pounds per annum per capita. And in September the French govern ment reduced their household ration to 13 PHO pounds a year, or bit over 1 pound of sugar a month. Even this meagre ration could not be filled by the French government 1t was found early in the fall. America was then asked for 100000 tons of sugar ana succeeded in sending S5.000 tons by December 1. The French request was granted because the American house. hold consumption was then at least n hounds per person, and 1t was consid- cred the duty of maintaining the French morale made our course clear.
 Today the sugar situation may be summarized by stating that IT America will reduce it's sugar con- sumption 10 to IS per cent. this
 nation will be able to send 100000
 more soldiers to France.
 Sugar today sells at seaboard re- fineries at $7.25 a hundred pounds. The wholesale grocer. has agreed to limit his profit to 9 cents hundred plus freight, and the retail grocer is supposed to take no more than 5O cents a hundred pounds profit. This regu- Iation was made by the food admins tration, which now asks the housewife to reduce sugar consumption as mucl as possible, using other sweetenerS and also reminds her that she shou' pay no more than cents a pound fC