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Show THE COFFEE HEARING-. The committee of tho House of Representatives Rep-resentatives which is investigating the so-called Monoy Trust, made a somewhat some-what sensational development in Thursday's Thurs-day's hearing. It -appears that a banking bank-ing combine in Now York City aidpd the Coffco Trust to limit tho amount of coffeo and maintain prices at a profitable profi-table figuro for the benefit of the Bra-zib'an Bra-zib'an planters and tho American and European coffee dealers. Mr. Herman Sielckeu, a large coffeo dealer in New York, disclosed the facts in the case. The bankers supplied the monoy, - tlio coffee planters destroyed a large portion por-tion of their crop and sold the remainder remain-der for a good deal mora than the whole would have brought if it had been put upon the market. That is, it was a scheme to limit the amount of coffee by dcstrd3ing what was held to be tho surplus, so that the remainder could be sold at prices dictated by the trust in combination with the banking syndicate which financed the deal. . Here is direct and positive evidence of what The Tribune has often cluimqd, that tho prices of commodities, of necessities ne-cessities of life, are not controlled by tho ordinary law of supply and demand, but that this law is perverted and thwarted by speculative combines which fix prices to suit themselves without regard to justice, fairness, or the productiveness of the various crops. Jn this case, there was sufficient coffeo to have allowed of a considerable decrease in tho price to the consumer. And yet the law of supplj and demand was interfered with to such an extent that there was not only no decrease in price, but an actual increase, this by tho arbitrary and despotic use of money mon-ey so that the-planters could bo paid for coffee which they destro3'cd, as well as for the coffee which they sold, aud the people of the United States wcro robbed so that the bankers and the planters could put through their combine for restricting the supply, II. appears that tho transaction was put through not only with the consent, but with the connivance and support ol the Brazilian Government, and on this ground Mr. Sielckcn denied the right of the committee to probe into tho facts. Tt wa.-j Mr. Sicluken's idea that tin less something of this kind had ben done to help the planters of Rra?,il to keep up the price of coffee, "there, might "have been a revolution.'' So that it appears from his testimony that not only did tho banking syndicate take-an interest in decreasing the sup ply of coffee and financing (hp plaut ere by giving (hem as much for the small quanliJy as they would have given for the full crop, but it was a political job also, wherein the Gov ernment of Brazil co-operated with the banking syndicate and with the planters. plant-ers. The deal, it appears further, was not for one year's crop alone, but the Brazilian Government cooperated in tho scheme to reduce the production of cof fee in succeeding years bv putting a tax on the planting of coffee, this be iug stated as a result of the Brazilian Govornmciit'8 desire "to encourage planters to diversify their crops.' Tt is all very nice and fine; but when stripped of tho wrappings of sophistry and syndicated interests, it is -imply a plan to rob the public through keep ing up the prico of coffee. Mr. Umtermycr, counsel for the in vestigation, showed that the produe tion of coffco some years ago averaged about 6,000,000 bags, and that it sold from 6' cents to 7 conts a pound in New York. Now the production is M.000,000 bags, and the prico is between be-tween lo cents and 11 cents a pound. That is, the product has doubled, and tho.pricc also has doubled, which' would indicate, a fourfold demand, a thing which io incredible. The actual fact is that tho increase iu price as shown by Mr. Vmlcrmyor was accomplished by the banking and planters' syndi catc, and by withholding from the market the surplus supply of coffee. -Mr. Siolckcn admitted that hp la 111 a syndicate, called a valorization coin mhtcc, of seven, which is now holding 1,000,000 bags of coffco out of the market in order to maintain price ; and ho had the nerve to sav that if this coffco waa thrown upon the market, mar-ket, it would have no effect on the prices. This shows a aublimo conti-dcuco conti-dcuco in the powor of the syndicate to control tho market, in fact, as dis closed by Mr. Siclckpn, tho combina tion is practically world wide. This valorization scheme is backed up bv a loan of $7.",000,000, of which English, German, French, nnd Belgian bankers took :rG5,000,000. The coffee trade of the world, therefore, there-fore, is in strong hands and is controlled con-trolled bv an international syndicate, called a valorization committor, com posed of se-pn pcr?oni. The pr-cp of coffee is jo absolutHv in the hands of this committee, that oven if 1,000,-000 1,000,-000 bags of coffco now withheld, wero thrown upon tho' market, it would be taken up and still hold by this com-milter. com-milter. But it is not going to be thrown upon the market; the committee commit-tee will sec lo that; and there isn't any way to compel thoso who hold it to put it on tho market; it is their property, and no one can compel them to sell' it, The combination, therefore, is complete; com-plete; it is fully buttressed by a strength of monoy power which cannot be overcome. Undoubtedly, tho syndicnto has mado allowances for ov-crj' ov-crj' exigency that may occur in tho world in the coffee trade. Most of tho nations have a good stiff tariff on tho importation of coffee. Wo doubt if the imposition o such a tariff b3' tho United States on the imports of coffco would affect the prico at all to the retail buyer, becauso tho combiuo could not afford to put up prices so that the demand would be decreased. According, it might not bo a bad idea for tho Unitod States to impose this dut3 There is certainly ample margin between the wholesale price of coffee, which is now put at betwecu 13 conta and Jbl cents a pound, and tho retail price, which runs from 35 cents to '15 ceuts a pound. That is, the ro-tail ro-tail buyer pays' ou nu avorago fullj three times tho wholesale price for the coffee which he buys for his famil3 use. Under theso - circumstances, it would seem as if tho Government ought to get some benefit out of this big deal. It 15-altogether Jilcely that the House will como to the same conclusion; con-clusion; and at all events, it. might be a good' object lesson for, the Government Govern-ment to impose a -duty upon coffee, and sco if this speculative trust has the ncrvo .to raise the prico lo tho retail buyer. Under all the circumstances, with a 'margin of two-thirds of tho retail prico in favor of the coffoo S3'udicate, it is certainly a plausible caso that no raise in price would be made to the ultima to consumer in caso the Government Gov-ernment imposed a good stiff tariff upon up-on coffee. |