The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1920-04-25
Senate Hears Seating In
dictrnent of Prohteers
Delivered by Capper of
Kansas.
ANNUAL RAID OF
CANNING SEASON
Spectators Blandly Pre-
dict Wholesale Prices
VIII Advance to 3OCts.
a Pound When Preserv-
ing Begins.

washington. April 24.-Declaring
mat sugar profiteers are preparing
Tor their annual cannings season
raid. Senator Arthur Capper Repub-
lican. of Kansas. on the floor OF the
senate today urged the government
TO declare an embargo on sugar. con-
hscate all sugar stores and distri-
quite them at cost to the public
In one of the most sweeping tndict
n1ents OF protteering ever heard in
the senate, Senator Canoer declared
the Americant eolonists went to war
with George III. for lesser outrages
than are now being perpetrated. and
said Captain Kidd lapsed into a Sun
day school character by comparison
with the present day profit hogs"
The poor are actually being de-
prived of healthful foods by profit
eering IN sugar which prevents them
putting up vegetables and fruits nee
essary to wholesome diet, Senat tor
Capper said.
He paid his respects to those who
are urging payment of soldier bon
uses by a sales tax which he de-
elared would be levied at the demand
of profteers on men, women and
children including the ex-service men
themselves. He came out fatty for
taxing war profits.
In addition to profiteering in sugar
Senator Capper declared it existed in
equally vicious form in cotton and
cotton goods. oil, lufn Der. meats
foodstuffs and tobacco, the poor
mans luxury. He continued;
For years the sugar interests have
annually and shamelessly and open
~ robbed American housewives dur
ing the canning season. They have,
with their extortionate charges as
regularly blighted the poor familys
only hope of putting up and storing
away a cheap and wholesome sup
ply of fruits and vegetables for
winter Every principle of health
full living demands just these things
in the family diet But the sugar
trust is allowed to prey on the health
and welfare of this nation every
year in the canning season that it
may enrich itself further by profits
running high in the hundreds of
millions The people are helpless;
there Is no real substitute for sugar.
1t is piracy so colossal and so Grim
inal that Captain Kidd and all the
famous pirates OF history become
Sunday school characters by com
parison. How long is this govern
ment going to stand for ito
FIFTY CENTS RETAIL
Sugar spectators blandly predict
sugar will sell at 80 cents or more
a. pound retail when the canning
season opens. Conservative whole
salers say the price to the consumer
will reach or exceed fifty cents d
pound before it closes. One billion
pounds of sugar have recently been
exported from these shores TO Great
Britain in addition to the millions
OF pounds shipped abroad during re-
cent weeks months saws \ crrraut
news report. This government owes
IL to itself and to the American peo-
pie TO declare at once an embargo
on sugar and to seize Immediately
every stock of this commodity In the
United States for distribution to the
consumer at cost, because a govern
ment that is sworn to protect its
people permits this robbery and puts
no curb upon it.
IT is time when 100 per cent
Americansm should be defined" Cap
per continued. II il means to evade
taxes, cheat the government and
swindle the people, let this be fairly
understood. But it would be in
structive To know just the difference
in principle between cheating the
government and putting 1t in bad and
attempting to overthrow it in the
rude manner of the Bolshevists. Both
methods reach the same result, one
is merely more crafty than the other.
We can regulate profits as we regu-
lated usury and in such regulation
provision can be made for maintain
ing a sinking fund for the lean years.
We have laws against profiteering.
If those charged with their enforce
ment will see that profit hogs go to
n