Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1920-06-03
PALMER CHARGED
WITH EXCEEDING
HIS AUTHORITY
IN SUGAR DEAL
ACTED Wholly Without Au-
thority Of Law" in Fixing
Maximum Selling Prices
of the Louisiana Crop.
HIS ACTION EXCITED
THE CUBAN PRODUCERS
LegaIiStiC Method Adopted
Was "WhoNy Ineffective
As a Means Of Price Con-
trol, F" Report Declares.
10Y nosnIne IoosnAL SPECIAL LEASED wlssl

10y MORNING JOURNAL SPECIAL LEASED wIRel
Washington, June 2-Attorney
General Palmer was charged with
exceeding his authority in fixing
the price of sugar in Louisiana, in
the report of the sugar inyestigat-
ing committee made in the house
today.
The report declared that the at
torney general had used his power
as chief prosecuting officer of the
government "for the purpose of
fixing the maximum selling price of
sugar in Louisiana, and in so do
ing acted wholly without authori-
ty of law and in violation of his
own construction of his official
duty"
The report was prepared by Rep
resentative Hustled. republican, of
New York, and charged that the
legalistic method adopted by Mr..
Palmer was wholly ineffective as
means of price control and that
1t gave apparent government sane
ton to extremely high sugar prices
which excited the cupiditiy of Gu
ban producers and caused an ad-
vance in the Cuban market"
Eighn Findings in Report.
There We're eight findings in the
majority report the resolution in
troduced by Representative Tink-
ham, republican, of Massachusetts,,
calling for an investigation, confin-
ing the committee to Louisiana
transactions. The majority find
ings follow:
THE attorney general on the
eighth day of November, 1919,
gave his official approval to a ten
tative arrangement made by Unit
ed States Attorney Henry Mooney,
with a committee representing the
sugar planters of Louisiana, by
which was established maximum
price of II cents per pound for
prime yellow clarified sugar and
Is cents per pound for clear gran
ulated sugar, net on plantation.
THE above stated prices were
fixed by said arrangement for tbe
entire Louisiana 1919-1g20 sugar
crop.
1.-The attorney general fixed said
prices at a time when he consid-
cred them rather high, had just
been advised by his representative
in Louisiana, United States Attor-
ney Henry Mooney, that such
prices were in excess of the fair
average price for the crop and
when he had reason to believe that
the entire crop could be purchased
at IA or Is cents per pound.
Crop Conditions Varied.
Crop conditions in Louisiana
during the year 1919 varied greatly
in different parts of the state and
on different plantations. In some
cases the loss of crop was very
heavy, In others it was compare
tively light, so that fixed price
for sugar which would yield only
fair and reasonable profit to the
producer whose cost of production
did not exceed the general average
for the state, would permit a GER
tain class of producers to make eN-
cessive profit and would deprive
another class of the fair and reas-
enable profit to which it was enti-
tied, under the law.
"Under the arrangement effect
ed by the attorney general with the
committee representing the sugar
planters of Louisiana, immunity
from prosecution for profiteering
was uPoii any p'N tNAi
persons might se,I at or under the
price fixed by the attorney gener-
al, whether such prices were in
violation of the Lever act or not.
Acted Without Authority.
"The attorney general used his
power as chief prosecuting officer
of the United States for the pur-
pose of fixing maximum selling
prices of sugar in the state or
Louisiana, and in so doing acted
wholly without authority OF law
and in violation of his own con-
struction of his own duty, which
precluded him from placing any in
depreciation upon United States
criminal statutes under which pos
sible violators might escape prose-
cution.
ION the eighth day of Novem-
ber, 1919, the attorney general had
no power to fix prices and his au-
thority in the premises was limited
to the prosecution of violators of
the provisions of the fortieth sec
tion OF the Lever act. public num-
her Al, Sixty-fifth congress.
Warned of Excessive Charges.
"The legalistic method adopted
by the attorney general was wholly
ineffective as a means Of price con-
troll; it gave apparent government
tai sanction to extremely high su-
gar prices which excited the Gu
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