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Show PROTEST THE SUGAR BEET INDUSTRY (From New West Magazine) There is probably no activity in connection with dometlcs sugar enterprises that has resulted in moro criticism and adverse ad-verse comment than its methods of sugar sales. This criticism has resulted from a lack of knowledge oii the part Of tho criti-clzer. criti-clzer. It is often remarked in tho interior districts that tho sugar companies charge moro for their product in tho vicinity where it Is manufactured or even "in the shado of tho factory" than they receive for It when sold at distant points. Others have tho erroneous impression that an arbitrary freight addition is mdae to some distant point and back again which results in tho higher high-er local price of sugar than tho seaboard prices which thoy read from day to day in tho market reports. But, as a matter of fact, sugar is sold by the only means that it can bo sold and do Justico to the domestic Industry, and by justico as meant to place it in position to realize tho same advantages in tho Bale of its product as the Importers of foreign sugar realize for theirs. Tho domestic domes-tic sugar industry was predicated and bulled and is sustained only upon tho principle of its ablity to meet tho competition of seaboard sugars. Approxmatcly 75 per cent of our sugar Is imported from Porto Rico, Philippine Islands and Cuba, Another 5 per cent approximately is manfactured in the Louisiana district. TheBO sugars arc refined at seaboard. Tho various seaboard points are San Franciso, New Orlens, Savannah, Philadeplhla, Now York and Boston, and whenever a jobber buys cane BUgar, either im-lorted im-lorted or domecstic, h buys it f. o. b. or at tho seaboard, and pays, tho freight from seaboard to point of destination. Ho therefore naturally buys from that seaboard point from which the lowest freight rate obtaincs to his point of destination, and the price of sugar at any point in tho United States is determined determin-ed by adding tho prevailing freight to tho seaboard prico frpm the nearest seaboard point. This arrangement results in cano uugars rinding their way to every Btato in tho Uuion. In muny instances, tho sugars refined at San Francisco are shipped Into districts where a lesser freight rate would obtain from either Now York or Now Orleans, in Which event the refiner shipping absorbs tho difference, or equalizes the freight with tho nearest slaboard point Now it happens that tho beet sugars being produced in tcm-pentcr tcm-pentcr zones aro scattered brought tho country, diaganally across tho United States from Michigan to Southern California, and in' total they produce only about 20. per cent of our consumption, I and in order that thoy may share tho same opportunity in distribution dis-tribution that the importers and seaboard refiners have, thrlr sugars must be sold on the same basis, i. c., f. o. b. or at seaboard. sea-board. And this Is exactly what happens when a merchant buys a car of sugar from a beet factory somewhere in tho inland. It is really sold to him f. o. b. or at tho nearest seaboard refining point to his destination, and toh merchant pays tho freight rate from such refining point to his destintion, Just as ho would do if ho were purchasing Importatcd sugar. And there is no other sales arrangement that could bo made for tho selling of domestic sugars that would not give tho Imported sugars an advantage in sales opportunity, which in tho interest of building up our dom ' esic industries, no sane American would request or expect. vl The proposition therefore resolves itself Into this: ThVUniteU States as a country is a largo Importer of sugar, importing 75 per cent o its product, all of which Is' sold at seaboard, and to give its domestic industry an equa clliance to profit in its activities' activ-ities' at no disadvantage to tho consumer, it figuaratively says, "Sell your domestic sugars In the same manner and by tho same methods that tho Importld sugars aro sold, that you may occupy a position of no disadvantage as a domestic Industry." It is tubs apparent that the-method employed is technically and economically econ-omically sound and Justified, and In addition to that it is sub-stainally sub-stainally supported by tho normal equation of tho problem. In n district that has all tho natural requirements for tho institution in-stitution of a beet sugar enterprise, and men In the community seek capital to build a sugar factory, tho man who proposes to furnish tho capital asks, "Whero will you sell your sugar? Will the people In this community buy it at a price equivalent to what It would cost them if wo were not manufacturing sugar hero?" And should that question bo put to each man, woman and child in that community, tho answer would be, "Wo surely would, if you build up an industry that will give us new payrolls, increase tho value of our real estate, mako markets for the raw proudcts of our farms, convert it Into finished products ship It to distnat lands, and bring back tho money to build up additional interests in our community, wo should only be willing to pay you tho same price that wo might bo obliged to pay for other sugars ,but If necessary would bo willing to pay a bonus.1' Now this is really what happens. When a sugar factory is builded in an inland community, statistics have proven that thoy always sell you the sugar for a lesser prico than you could purchase pur-chase it from elsewhere. Therefore, as a moral Justification, for tho existing methods of sugar sales and distribution, tho factory owner need only say, "Wo have expened hundreds of thousands thou-sands of dollars in your community which has benefited you directly and indirectly, has increased tho value of your lands, made possible Increased population, added great advantogo to your agricultural methods by the necessity of intensified agriculture, agri-culture, improved the cahracter and uality of your soils, brought about collateral Industries, such as stock feeding, new irrigation projects, increased your merchandising and bank clearances and all general business activities, and in return wo ask you to buy domestic sugar and pay a slightly lesser prico than you would pay someone else for it, who has done nothing to benefit your community And, accepting such statement as tho approximate truth, tho reader must admit both tho economic and moral Justification Jus-tification of tho sales procedure. |