The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1918-01-17
CUBAN PLANTERS
MAY CUT ON SUGAR
Will Turn to Raising Garden
Truck Unless Relieved of
Their Surplus Crop
WANT GUARANTEES
TO BE PROVIDED
Have 100000 Tons Left Over and No
Way in Which to Market It-Lack
of Storeroom and There Is Talk of
Using Schoolhouses and Churches.

NEW YORK, Jan. 17.-UnlesS Cuban
sugar planters receive guarantee that
all the sugar which they raised in 1917
is to be taken off their hands many OF
them will give up growing cane and
turn to the cultivation of garden truck,
for which they can find a ready market
at home. The statement that the Gu
ban planters are in a position of eco
nomic peril, both as regards their i'm
mediate obligations and the chances Of
their production in the future, was
made by ]. Y. knight, director Of the
! Republic of Cuba News Bureau, an
agency for the dissemination of infor-
nation concerning the island republic.
The fear Of the Cuban planter that
he may not be able to dispose of all
his sugar comes at time when sugar
is mighty scarce and sugar hungcred
world is looking to the distributing
agencies of this country for relief.
1.-THE international sugar committee
has pledged itself to arrange for the
purchase Of 100000 tons of Cuban
sugars, Mr.. Knight said. g In addi-
tion it took an option on 10000 tons,
thus providing for 100000 tons of the
new crop.
This action was taken when an ade-
Guatc estimate Of the crop could not be
made. but on the personal estimate of
Earl D. Babst, president of the Amer
lean Sugar Refining company, and that
of Willett & Gray, sugar statisticians
Il The Cuban government estimated the
: crop at a minimum of 100000 tons
: and II. A. Himlav estimated it at 1920,
{ ST. tons. Now the estimate of the Gu
i ban crop is in excess of 3,600000. As
/. YOU see. there will remain in the hand,
& of the Cuban planters 100000 tons aft
. err the international committee gets tht
e 100000 tons it has planned to take
g There is no competitive market fo1
sugar. only the international committee
y and there is no vehicle for bringing
y this 400, 900 tons to the market
+ 1--WE have heard much about tn,
7 world 5 needs for sugar. This crol
l. was planted in April last in respons
i to proclamation of the American min
e isteg, in which he said that the great
est function that Cubans could perforr
a in winning the great war was to rails
n q bumper crop of sugar. And the
is did produce the greatest crop Of saga
r in the history of the world. The il
Q ternational sugar committee has cor
;: stantlv created the impression that 5
many million pounds Of sugar are nt
% ing to reach this country and the pub
h lie has got accustomed to think in tern
Il Of pounds forgetting that Cubans al
l. raising it by the million tons
1e This 100000 tons, or S96 600 ,0C
in pounds of sugar is practically an III
Of available supply. 1t must be dispose
Of or the production of sugar in II
in future will be discouraged.
is Sugar has been coming to the a
OF lantic seaboard and vet the accumul
lis ton in Cuba is greater than ever b
III fore. There is a lack of gtoraroom f
it and even now Cubans arc serious
considering storing in schoolhous
and churches vast aecumulations
raw sugar in bags. Yet refners
this country complain that they ha,
or not enough stock to work their plan
al at full capacity
~ Mr.. Knight testified before the Sc
~ ate committee on manufactures
oe7 Washington last week that the Cub
be producer predicted his activities a
ha heavy borrowing to finance his Gro
al on the assumption that he would
"a able to dispose of all he raised
Unless he does get rid of it, :
said, he will return to the cultivati
~ of other foodstuffs which he can S
be at his door, such as garden truck a
,re vegetable