22 THR OUDBRBA REVIEW 
CUBA CANE SUGAR CORPORATION 
FIFTH ANNUAL REPORT 
For THE FISCAL YEAR ENDED SEPTEMBER 30, 1920 
November 5, 1920. 
To THE STOCKHOLDERS: 
Your Board of Directors is gratified to be able to submit its Fifth Annual Report 
within six weeks following the termination of the fiscal year ending September 30, 
1920, which is a testimonial to the efficiency of the Accounting Department. 
Owing to the general drought throughout the Island of Cuba, the early cane 
estimates of the 1919-1920 crop were not realized and, consequently, the total Cuban 
sugar crop aggregated only 26,237,242 bags (3,748,177 tons) against 31,050,000 bags 
(4,435,714 tons) as estimated on December 24, 1919, by Messrs. Guma-Mejer, and 
against 27,802,435 bags (3,971,776 tons) made the year before. 
As is well known, labor unrest has been universal. Cuban plantations and railroads 
have not been free from labor troubles and attendant strikes, although perhaps affected 
in a lesser degree than industries in other countries. 
In view of the general labor situation it is a great achievement on the part of 
Cuba to have harvested her crop, transported it over her railroads to the shipping 
ports and placed it at the disposal of consumers, within a shorter period than in 
previous years, even making allowance for the smaller crop. 
All your Corporation’s plantations finished grinding before May 30, with the 
exception of Moron, which completed its crop of 611,081 bags (88,654 tons) on June 8. 
The output at Moron is the largest production of any single estate made in Cuba this 
crop. The increase in production at this estate from the 170,263 bags (24,328 tons), 
made during the first crop after its purchase by your Corporation to the 611,031 bags 
(88,654 tons) produced this year, is very gratifying and justifies the action of your 
management in increasing that plantation’s machinery and cane fields, 
The sucrose content of the cane throughout the Island was again unsatisfactory, 
probably due to the irregularity and scarcity of the rain precipitations, for, as stated 
in the previous report, the sucrose content in the cane is dependent upon weather 
conditions. 
As was anticipated, sugar prices once “de-controlled” after two years of Govern- 
mental regulation, began to show wide variations; in fact the range increased far 
more than could have been foreseen, running from 61%4¢c—at which some new crop 
sugars were sold in the fall of 1919, when it was realized that the United States 
Government would no longer control sugar—to 23144c¢ in May, the highest price reached, 
soon to be followed by a precipitous decline to 6%4c¢, the price ruling at present. 
The proportion of the Cuban crop sold at the highest prices was relatively small. 
The peak having been reached during the months of May and June when there was 
very little cane being ground, neither the colonos nor the plantation owners participated 
to any great extent in the high prices. 
There still remains in the Island, unsold, about one-tenth of the crop. The prob- 
abilities are that the average price obtained for the entire crop, when the remnant is 
finally sold, will be between 10c¢ and 11le per pound. 
The great variation in prices experienced during this first year of “de-controlled” 
sugar proves the wise policy of having had sugar under Governmental regulation and 
control during the last two years of the World War. The chief cause for the variation 
in prices was the uncertainty resulting from the “de-control’ of sugar by the United 
States Government last fall. Under such extreme variations it is readily seen what 
difficulties have attended the selling of sugars. 
