The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1918-01-14
WAR HAS UPSET
WORLDS SUGAR BOWL
President Babst, of American sugar
Refining Co.. Tells why supply
Went short.

No one ever dreamed that sugar,
which The world produces In billions
of pounds yearly. could become SO
scarce that folks would be asaed by
the government ana the sugar re-
hners TO use 1t spariusly. But the
war. which has brought about many
extraordinary conditions. also upset
the worlds sugar bowl
To-day everybody is interested in
sugar, The housewife is eager to
know when sugar w3tl te more plenti-
ful And from a different point Of
view, the business maa is following
the sugar situation, interested In the
success OF the plan adopted as an
emergency war measure by the gov
ernments of the United States and Tho
slies to regulate and control supply.
demand and price.
These facts lend particular impor-
lance TO the following interview with
Earl ID. Btbst. head of the American
Sugar Refining company and one of the
three United states members of the
international sugar committee.
Not SO many years ago. 1t WASH I
the popular custom for men In Mr..
Bahst's position to discuss their busi-
ness with the public. But Mr.. Babs
IS OF the new school of big business
managers who believes the public is
entitled 70 know all about 1t.
More Sugar Soon.
In the Interview Mr.. Babst covered
every phase of the sugar situation.
FIRST. he spoke of the prospects of the
Immediate future. which most con-
Germs the housewife said he:
sugar Will soon be more plentiful
with tho new crop of sugar cane be-
ing hal yested in Cuba and Porto Rico.
Everything Is favorable to sufficient
supply for our needs. bul not enough
to use sugar extravaganuy or waste
! fully. There must be no overbuying
/ or boarding
| And what about the price7" he was
asked.
! Ordinarily the so~called law OF
supply and demand is most important
factor in regulating the price of sugar
| as Of every other commodity. But this
1 law has been more or less. IL not en-
I tirely. suspended the result OF the
control of tho sugar situation by the
act Of six governments, including our
own
"All during the war sugar in the
United States has been lower In price
taking the average yearly price, than
anywhere else in the world. To-day
comparing "a ger on the basis of caIoric
food value, it is one OF the cheapest
foods.
sugar Prices 10 Drop.
~ ter the new supplies are received
from cube and refined, ana prices are
4 lowered under tho proposals Of the
food administration. sugar win tie one
OF the cheapest, II not the cheapest
foods 10 go on the American table"
/ Mr.. Babst agrees with Mr.. Hoover
that If the allied nations had net en-
tered into Joint agreement to conserve
| the available sugar supply. the price
| to the consumer would have Aoared
! Said he In explanation:
| The facts are these: Europe'a pro.
! duction OK sugar was not only greatly
,urtailed when the opposing armies
swarmed over tho sugar beet folds OF
| northern france and Belgium. but
England and other foreign countries
! were forced to turn to other sources
/ for sugar. The logical source waa
/ Cuba. from which the United States
gets the bulk OF its cane sugar.
This developed competition which
until the international agreement was
i reached. caused Il serious advance in
price both of raw and refined sugar
but with the international committee
| acting for the allies ard the food ad.
ninistration In control in this country
| the supply will be equally distributed
and prices stabilized.
No ships for Java.
Great quantities of raw cane sugar
| are locked up in PARKWAY Java, un.
/ available because ships cannot bt
| spared to transport II. Hence the Eu.
| ropean allies are asking Cuba and the
! United States as a practical patriotic
! duty to supply them with sugar The
United States Is making every effort
I to comply with this request for the
! very interesting reason that II VIC save
I the allies from the necessity OF trans
porting 100000 tons of sugar from
Java, It will release shipping sufficient
! to carry about 100000 American sol.
diers TO France"
| When Mr.. Babst voluntarily APP
| peared the other week before the SEN
( ate subcommittee inquiring into the
sugar situation, he told what his COM
pany as well as the other large refin-
! ing interests were doing to safeguard
! the sugar supply. Among other things
he laid emphasis on the value of sugar
! IN packages as an economical means
Of distribution. This especially inter-
I ested Senators Lodge. Jones and Ward
aman. and the subject was brought up
! in the interview. In reply to ques-
tions. Mr.. Babst said:
Yes. presume the public. being
| interested in having the sugar supply
| conserved, !s NIua1ly interested in
knowing why sugar In packages can
II be more economi cally distributed than
| loose sugar And this Is the reason
In the FIRST place. package sugars
| are weighed and packed by machine
| This saves the eroeer's time and stops
! his loss by spillase which occurs when
sugar has to be scooped by hand out
| of a barred, carried 10 the scales
weighed and tied In paper bags And
when he counts this saving, plus the
value Of his time and the cost OF paper
| bags and string, he finds he can handN
| package sugar more economically.
Making sugar Go Round.
Sugar in packages also enables him
to restrict sales to actual needs. ia
make IL go as far as possible. In our
own experience during the recent